New York Knicks: Dennis Smith Jr., Ignas Brazdeikis are off to the G League

The New York Knicks are assigning Dennis Smith Jr. and Ignas Brazdeikis to the G League in an effort to get the two live reps.

Dennis Smith Jr. and Ignas Brazdeikis are leaving the New York Knicks to go take part in the G League’s bubble at Disney World. The two young players have failed to crack Tom Thibodeau‘s rotations to this point in the season, but they should be able to get some much-needed reps with the Westchester Knicks.

The team announced that both players were going down on Monday, but Smith’s decision to go was reported by the New York Daily News over the weekend. Thibodeau confirmed to reporters that Smith had asked for the G League assignment.

Tom Thibodeau says he’s on board with the decision to send Dennis Smith Jr. to the G League for reps.

— Danny Small (@dwsmall8) January 31, 2021

This is a notable development in Smith’s career. He’s had his ups and downs during his Knicks tenure thus far, but his decision to go down to the G League shows that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get himself back on track.

As for Brazdeikis, he has yet to carve out any kind of consistent role with the Knicks in his two seasons with the team. However, he was a standout for the Westchester Knicks last season and it’s likely that he’ll be a big part of what they do in the bubble.

Westchester Knicks Schedule

The G League bubble should be an interesting watch for Knicks fans. Westchester will play 15 games in less than a month and with the addition of Smith and Brazdeikis to the roster, there is no shortage of intriguing players to keep an eye on.

Here’s the full @wcknicks Knicks schedule for the bubble in Disney World. They kick off their season on Wednesday Feb. 10th at 3:30 pm ET against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants pic.twitter.com/0Ufu4CFIgp

— Danny Small (@dwsmall8) January 27, 2021

Full Schedule

Feb. 10 — @ Fort Wayne — 3:30 p.m. ET
Feb. 11 — @ Greensboro — 3:00 p.m. — ESPN U
Feb. 13 — vs. Santa Cruz — 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 15 — @ Rio Grande Valley — 11:30 a.m.
Feb. 17 — @ Long Island — 11:00 a.m.
Feb. 18 — vs. Team Ignite — 7:00 p.m. — ESPN+
Feb. 20 — @ Austin — 7:00 p.m.
Feb. 22 — vs. Canton — 11:30 a.m.
Feb. 23 — vs. Lakeland — 3:00 p.m. ESPN2
Feb. 25 — vs. Salt Lake City — 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 27 — @ Raptors — 3:00 p.m.
Feb. 28 — vs. Iowa — 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 2 — vs. Memphis — 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 4 — vs. Agua Caliente — 7:30 p.m.
Mar. 5 — vs. Erie — 3:30 p.m.

The top eight teams in the G League bubble will qualify for an eight-team, single-elimination tournament that will begin on March 8. The championship game will be held on March 11.