Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr. said he hopes to return this season from a back injury that has forced him to miss New York's last six games.

"I just want to get back out there and play," Smith said, according to the New York Post's Marc Berman. "That's all I'm really worried about right now, getting back out there hooping."

Smith, who hasn't played since March 12, participated in some of Wednesday's practice and is considered questionable for Thursday's game against the Toronto Raptors. He said after an MRI that it "looked like two disks" were out of place in his back.

"Something was inflamed back there," said the 21-year-old Smith, who has averaged 14.6 points and six assists in 17 games with the Knicks this season. "It was definitely nothing that would need surgery or anything like that. Proper rehab and some rest."

He and teammate Frank Ntilikina, who has also dealt with several injuries in his second NBA season, have yet to play alongside one another on the court since the blockbuster Kristaps Porzingis trade brought Smith and DeAndre Jordan over from Dallas. But Smith said he is hopeful he can Ntilikina can see what their on-court dynamic is like once before the offseason.

"That'd be lovely," Smith said. "We talked about that like two days before he started back playing. We were both in the gym late one night and we just chopped it up about that, so hopefully we'll be able to. I don't want him to get hurt and I don't want to be hurt myself. But if we can do that, it's definitely something we'll aim for."

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