The idea of playing for the Knicks intrigued Dennis Smith Jr. But not as much as teaming up with Derrick Rose. That truly appealed to the ACC Rookie of the Year, one of college basketball’s top prospects.

“I’m a Derrick Rose fan, so I’m not going to say they need a point guard,” the gifted 6-foot-2 Smith said Monday after N.C. State practiced at Barclays Center in advance of Tuesday’s ACC Tournament opening round. “I like Derrick Rose a lot.

“That would be exciting,” he said, about potentially playing alongside the Knicks point guard, who will be a free agent this summer. “Derrick Rose is somebody I watched a lot of, and I got a lot of respect for him. I definitely could [see myself playing in New York City]. It would be great.”

Smith has yet to announce his intentions regarding the NBA draft, and said he’s focused on extending N.C. State’s season as far as possible, but all signs point to him declaring and likely being a top-five pick. N.C. State (15-16) coach Mark Gottfried believes if the Knicks have the opportunity to land Smith, they should pounce on his star, who has averaged 18.5 points, 6.3 assists, 4.5 rebounds and shot 46 percent from the field this season.

“I’d build my franchise around him if I was an NBA team,” said Gottfried, who was fired Feb. 15, but allowed to finish out the season. “Not only is he a great player, he’s going to get better. He’s also a guy who can be the face of a franchise, and handle it the right way. I think he’s an elite-level guy in the NBA pretty quickly.

“It’s been a hard year for him. We haven’t won like we all thought we would, and he’s handled it as good as you can handle it.”

Despite the personal accolades, this season hasn’t gone as well as the Fayetteville, N.C., native had hoped. But as disappointing as it has been, from the Wolfpack’s 13th-place finish in the ACC to the dismissal of Gottfried, Smith believes it will only help him at the next level.

“I’ve never had a situation like this, where my coach got fired, I’m on a losing team. It’s different for me,” he said. “Whenever I do enter the draft, it will feel like the norm. I got to get used to it. It taught me everything’s not going to be simple. I just learned to persevere.”

He’s battled adversity before. Smith tore his ACL prior to his senior year of high school. He couldn’t get out of bed for a few days following surgery.

“I just remember being miserable,” he said. “I would go the gym when I could start walking. I would just watch.”

Instead of getting down, he enrolled at N.C. State early, in January 2016, to get an early start and get help rehabbing his knee. He immersed himself in the program, attending practices and games, being part of the huddle. He spent the extra time watching highlights of NBA point guards, studying players such as Rose, Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook.

“I think you got to be a student of the game,” he said. “You have to learn somehow.”

More than his impressive numbers, Gottfried has been awed by how well Smith has handled all the attention and dealt with the negativity. He’ll sign autographs until his fingers go numb. He’s great with young fans. His effort hasn’t waned despite all the losing.

“A lot of people want a piece of his time,” the coach said. “I think he’s handled all of that magnificently.”