ATLANTA – J.R. Smith will make the second start of his Knicks career Wednesday night vs. the Hawks when the 2-4 club tries to fulfill owner James Dolan’s guarantee.
As expected, a desperate Mike Woodson will go with Smith over point guard Pablo Prigioni. It sets up a three-guard alignment with Smith, Raymond Felton and Iman Shumpert. Woodson has wanted to start Smith ever since last season ended – giving him a promotion after winning the Sixth Man of the Year Award.
Smith didn’t start at all last season. The flaky shooting guard started once in his first season with the team, in Milwaukee in March 2012, one month after signing with the team after returning from China.
Smith is playing his second game of the season after rehabbing from knee surgery and serving a five-game marijuana suspension. Smith was dreadful in his season debut Sunday vs. the Spurs: five points, four turnovers, while shooting 1-of-9 from the field.
“I’m excited to play regardless,’’ said Smith, who came off the bench for most of his Nuggets career, too. “It’s been a long time coming with the recovery process. I think the best part about it is right after warmups, you go straight to the action and not sit down and wait. Regardless, it’s still basketball.’’
Smith was upset last preseason that he wasn’t a starter, but quickly warmed to the sixth man role. Though Smith is still rusty, Woodson is searching desperately for the right combination with center Tyson Chandler injured.
Woodson likes the two-point-guard alignment, but may not want to hurt Shumpert’s psyche by benching him in Atlanta, where he played in college at Georgia Tech.
“We’ll add offense early, throw J.R. in there,’’ Woodson said at Wednesday’s morning shootaround at Atlanta’s Philips Arena. “Knowing he won’t play 30-plus minutes. We’ll keep him around 25-28 minutes. I know what I’m getting from Pablo: defensive pressure on the floor. That’s important [off the bench]. ’’
Smith said he’s now forced into a leadership role after most of last season’s vets are gone.
“The last two years, I didn’t have that voice on this team,’’ Smith said. “Some other guys had that voice. Now it’s a good voice to have.
“We miss our vets,’’ Smith added. “The difference between Jason Kidd, Kurt Thomas, the Rasheed Wallaces is the communication. Last training camp, we were 100 percent better on our communication skills on the defensive and offensive end. Myself, Melo [Carmelo Anthony], Ray have become the vets. We have to do better policing that.’’
Woodson had a long talk with Kenyon Martin over his displeasure about the platoon system, and Woodson is breaking it for this Atlanta-Houston back-to-back. Martin will play Wednesday and Thursday, when the Knicks face Dwight Howard and the Rockets at the Garden. Woodson said he will do so by holding Martin’s minutes vs. Atlanta in the 15-minute range.