J.r. Smith isn’t sure he got his fair market value, but he got his Knicks. And that was the most important thing to the tattooed guard who turned down at least one larger offer.
Smith accepted the terms of a new four-year, $24.7 million contract yesterday, his agent Leon Rose told The Post.
Smith, who would have accepted a significantly higher offer elsewhere, will make roughly $6 million per year, starting at the league’s average salary that a source said will be $5.75 million. It was the most the Knicks could offer under the early-Bird rights rules since Smith played only two seasons for the Knicks. And Smith got an opt-out after the third season to boot.
“He had other offers and interest, but he wanted to remain a Knick,’’ Rose said.
Smith, 27, and his father, Earl, wanted to wait at least through Dwight Howard’s decision today before agreeing to terms. But the agent assured the Smiths no whopping offer — in the $9-to-10 million per year range — was coming down the pike. Plus, Howard reportedly may not make his decision until after the weekend.
Two of Smith’s suitors, Houston and Dallas, were waiting to see if they land Howard before making Smith an offer. The Rockets considered a four-year package, however, according to a source, neither team was willing to go as high as $8 million per.
Still, the Freehold, N.J., native turned down more per-year salary from at least one team — believed to be the rebuilding Bucks — to stay home. He will get to play with his brother, young point guard Chris Smith, who assuredly will make the Knicks roster, even if he spends some time at the team’s D-League affiliate in Erie, Pa.
Smith would have left the Knicks if he received either a 3-year, $30 million offer or a four-year, $36 million offer, but his market value wasn’t that high after a poor playoff performance in which he was suspended one game for elbowing the Celtics’ Jason Terry. He averaged 18.1 points on 42.2 percent shooting in the regular season, but dropped to 14.3 points and 33.1 percent in the playoffs when he played, The Post has reported, with fluid on his knee.
Speculation his night life was affecting his game surfaced instead. But according to a source, the Knicks brass was impressed by his courage, as he publicly took full blame for the second-round loss to the Pacers. Smith then added he wanted to “retire a Knick.’’ Those words impressed Knicks owner James Dolan.
It hasn’t been determined what role Smith will play in 2013-14, but the NBA’s Sixth Man Award winner sat down with coach Mike Woodson last weekend at Amare’ Stoudemire’s wedding bash to talk about his future. Smith and Woodson played golf earlier in the week, as they also sometimes do on team road trips. Smith was unhappy coming off the bench last preseason before warming up to the role. He considers himself a budding All-Star and may want to take the next step.
Woodson, Smith’s biggest fan, has three options for the starting lineup — either Smith, the returning Pablo Prigioni or newcomer Andrea Bargnani in three distinctly different looks. Starting Smith would move Iman Shumpert to the small forward or make him trade bait.
Earl Smith indicated he felt his son wasn’t getting his market value with the early-Bird rights maximum offer.
“I’m diehard Knick fan, but I want to see my son get justice,’’ Earl Smith told The Post Wednesday.
With Smith and Prigioni aboard, the Knicks, driven to compete for a title, can focus on seeing whether the rest of their mini mid-level exception will be enough to keep their third free agent, Chris Copeland. Prigioni took a $1.5 million slice of the $3.18, leaving $1.7 million for either Copeland or another free agent.
The Knicks have power forward Elton Brand, small forwards Francisco Garcia, Matt Barnes, and Carlos Delfino on their radar. They also have a $1.4 million veteran’s minimum for a third point guard, with Sebastian Telfair in their crosshairs.
But the biggest piece to the summer has been locked up. Smith was the team’s secondary scorer to Carmelo Anthony and if he played as well in the playoffs as he did in the regular season, there’s no telling how far the Knicks could have gone.