New Knick Ricky Ledo committed seven turnovers Wednesday against the Clippers — a statistic he didn’t want to talk about after the contest. But the enigmatic shooting guard with a checkered past looked at the night in a different way: Ledo had set his career high in minutes, with 26.
“It was like my first NBA game ever,’’ Ledo told The Post.
It was the first time in his young career he could make a mistake and not be worried about getting pulled. Even before Friday’s contest at the Garden against the Celtics, in which he notched 20 minutes, the 6-foot-6 guard already had played 44 minutes in his first three games as a Knick. That equaled the minutes he received in his two seasons with Dallas.
Incredible. It’s understandable why Ledo is relishing the opportunity.
“I’m blessed, trying to show I can be part of this organization and keep getting better on the offense,’’ said Ledo, who shot 3-of-7 for seven points Friday, but turned the ball over three more times.
“He’s got a new lease on his career,’’ his business manager, Tzvi Grossman, told The Post. “I told him the Clippers game was like his NBA debut.”
Knicks president Phil Jackson gave Ledo a 10-day contract last week to fill a roster spot that had been open since All-Star Weekend, when the club bought out Amar’e Stoudemire. Coincidentally, Dallas owner Mark Cuban cut Ledo to make room for Stoudemire.
With Tim Hardaway Jr. still out with a wrist injury and uncertainty remaining about the returns of Alexey Shved (cracked rib) and Jose Calderon (Achilles strain), it’s likely Ledo will get a second 10-day deal when the first one expires Sunday.
Cuban hailed last week’s Ledo signing, saying Jackson may have gotten himself “a steal.’’ According to a source, Cuban was not in favor of cutting Ledo and preferred to ax Greg Smith for Stoudemire, but coach Rick Carlisle wanted an extra big man for what the team believes can be a title run.
Ledo has plenty of baggage and a history of being irresponsible. On the surface, he’s not a Derek Fisher kind of guy. He’s on his third agent in a year after having dumped Seth Cohen and Raymond Brothers.
He had a big dispute with Cohen over money he owed the agent over his Dallas pact, according to a source. The Players Association came to Cohen’s defense and advised Ledo to pay what was owed.
Six months ago, Ledo enlisted high-powered New York-based agent Jeff Schwartz.
“He’s my guy,’’ Ledo said.
Ledo grew up amid drugs and violence in Rhode Island. He was raised by his grandparents because his father was shot when Ledo was a child, and his brother landed in prison. He attended five high schools and was declared academically ineligible at Providence in his lone year there before declaring for the NBA Draft. According to a source, he may have learning-disability issues.
A lottery talent, Ledo fell to pick 43, in the second round, considered a risky project. This season, he was back and forth between the Mavericks and the D-League’s Texas Legends.
Ledo never developed a bond with his teammates because of the shuttling between the two clubs. Whenever the Legends were home, the Mavericks sent him to play there. When the Legends were on the road, the Mavericks wanted him with the Dallas coaching staff. The D-League affiliate was only 20 minutes from Dallas’ practice facility, but the back-and-forth didn’t do him any good.
In fact, Ledo still is trying to get into NBA game shape, and his turnovers Wednesday were mostly due to fatigue.
“He didn’t get to know the guys in the locker room, he was like a man without a home,’’ Grossman said.
After the seven-turnover game, Fisher said he doesn’t want Ledo to lose his natural aggression to shoot and attack. He’s a natural scorer, with a sweet shot, a nice passer and quick to the basket, but needs work on his ballhandling and defense.
“I think he’s trying to be aggressive and make plays,’’ Fisher said. “You don’t want to turn it over that many times. I don’t know if you want to dial back the aggression. We need to continue to have guys willing to get in there and try to attack and make plays. He’s still getting comfortable offensively. I don’t think it’s about reining him in, just having him understand his options in those situations.’’