Dennis Smith Jr. is back in the Slam Dunk contest.
The NBA announced Tuesday that the new Knick, acquired on Thursday from Dallas in the Kristaps Porzingis blockbuster trade, will be in the contest for the second straight year, returning to his home state of North Carolina to participate on Feb. 16 during NBA All-Star weekend in Charlotte.
The 21-year-old Smith, whom Dallas selected No. 9 overall in the 2017 NBA Draft -one pick after the Knicks took Frank Ntilikina, finished third in last year's dunk contest as a rookie. Smith is a native of Fayetteville and played for a year at NC State. Smith is the first Knicks to participate in the dunk contest since James White in 2013.
Rounding out the dunk contest field are Miles Bridges, John Collins and Hamidou Diallo.
Smith played his second game as a Knick Tuesday night against the Pistons. He entered the game averaging 12.8 points per game and 4.4 assists per game this season. The guard came to the Knicks along with DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews and two future first-round picks while the Knicks sent Dallas Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke.