Knee Injury Derails Chris Smith's Bid to Make Knicks GREENBURGH, N.Y. - Chris Smith's training camp ended Wednesday with disappointing news. The Knicks announced Smith would have surgery on his patella tendon in his left knee. The team expects him to be out three to six months. Smith, the younger brother of J.R. Smith, entered camp hoping to make the regular-season roster after signing with the team in August. Now, he will have to go through a rigorous rehab to return with the hopes of playing with an N.B.A. team. When he played in college at Louisville, Chris Smith was told he had tendinitis in his knee. "It's just heartbreaking, really," Smith said. It's tough because everybody wants to play, nobody wants to sit out. I hadn't missed a practice throughout my whole college career. Smith injured his knee Saturday in practice and has sat out since. Smith said he sensed the injury was bad because he felt his knee tweak a little and the swelling was significant. "It swelled up on me," Smith said. It's just wear and tear on my left knee and a piece broke off. J.R. Smith was looking forward to playing next to his brother, whether in preseason games or in the regular season. Smith said it was difficult to see his brother get hurt. "Any time you see anybody hurt it hurts you, but when you see your brother hurt - and he lives in the same house as you and is trying to achieve the same goals as you - it really puts a damper on the mood," he said. To have this injury going into training camp when you're trying to make a team and prove yourself, it's frustrating. My job as a teammate is to keep pushing him and make sure he gets back to 100 percent. Shortly after the Knicks' practice Wednesday, J.R. Smith asked for fans on Twitter to encourage his brother. Please Pray for my Lil Bro @Cswish9 as he goes in for surgery tomorrow! Smith wrote. At Louisville, Chris Smith played point guard. He helped lead the Cardinals to the Final Four last season while averaging 9.2 points and 3.6 rebounds a game. The Cardinals also won the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden. Smith played for the Knicks' summer league team in Las Vegas this year. He averaged 5.2 points and 2 rebounds. His best game was against the Toronto Raptors when he had 10 points and 3 rebounds. Before his injury, Smith was competing with other rookies - Oscar Bellfield, Chris Copeland, Mychel Thompson, John Shurna and Henry Sims - to make the opening day roster. The Knicks have 13 players with guaranteed contracts. That left two spots available. Smith said he was confident he was going to make the team. "I feel like my defense is what gets me over the top right now," he said. Once I come back I'll come back stronger.