J.R. Smith loved his time in New York, but now he sees he loved it too much.

Smith, traded to Cleveland earlier this month, has been re-energized by going from a last-place team to a playoff-bound team, and the enigmatic swingman also has found much more time to spend on his game, no longer distracted by the nightlife of New York City.

“I think this is the best situation for me, ’cause there’s nothing but basketball,” Smith said in an interview with NBA.com. “There’s nothing you expect but basketball. There’s nothing, there’s no going out, there’s no late nights. There’s video games, basketball and basketball. So it’s a great thing, ’cause I go back to where I came from. When I grew up, I never, I wasn’t allowed to go out. I missed my prom because I went to an AAU tournament, and all that stuff. For me, it was basketball, basketball, basketball.

“And then when I got in the situation where I was at an early age, it was more, ‘All right, let me see what this life is about,’ as opposed to just keep going. So now, I get the chance to get back to my roots.”

Smith said he’s been practicing with his brother, Chris — a former Knick — every day and is getting more rest than ever, allowing him to see how much better he could have been if he had shown the same commitment during nearly four seasons with the Knicks, which included a Sixth Man of the Year award.

“I always made myself better by staying in the gym,” Smith said. “When you replace that with stuff off the court, then you’re taking away from what made you who you are, or what got you to a certain point.

“It was kind of pulling me down in a sense, of not getting enough rest, not doing things you’re supposed to be doing, things you’re used to doing. So when you start missing those shots you’re supposed to make, especially wide-open shots, it was like, all right, what’s going on, what’s going on? Instead of looking at what it is, you’re reverting to that even more, instead of going back to the basics. So I think that’s the greatest part about being here.”

Though Smith is excited about the fresh start and the improved record, the New Jersey native still wishes he could’ve made it work with the Knicks, especially in the triangle offense, mastered by Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.

“I wanted to be one of the players that understood it, that got it,” Smith said. “The two greatest players in the world at my position played in it, and thrived in it, got all the accolades and championships and whatever else came with it. I wanted to be a part of that significant group. Not that I think I’m like those two guys in any way, but to be a part of the building process that that’s the base of, and go from there.”

Smith also holds no hard feelings, understanding the Knicks needed to make a change.

“They made the right decision,” Smith said. “You have to take the car apart in order for it to be what you want it to be.”