Demoted, Chris Smith Plays in the Shadow of Nepotism Brendan Bannon for The New York Times Chris Smith played his first game for the Erie BayHawks, the Knicks" D-League affiliate, on Friday. Smith is the brother of the Knicks" J. R. Smith. ERIE, Pa. - On the first shot of his professional basketball career, Chris Smith, the younger brother of J. R. Smith, took a handoff, squared up, dribbled left with a defender on his hip, elevated and fired. The ball clanged off the side of the rim. Beyond the hoop, two inflatable playhouses shook with children bouncing inside. Smith jogged back downcourt, fouled a 3-point shooter and was benched. He did not play the rest of the quarter. Although he finished the game strong, he was not the best player on the court. But he was the only one with a guaranteed N.B.A. contract. That distinction is sure to follow him, now that the Knicks have sent him here to play for the Erie BayHawks, their Development League team, now that he is surrounded by players who want what he has, who are desperate for a chance. It will follow him until he proves himself capable of playing in the N.B.A. Many Knicks fans are not so sure. Their thinking is that Smith was a role player at Louisville, played poorly in the N.B.A. summer league and is on the Knicks" 15-man roster only because of his older brother. With Tyson Chandler out, some fans would rather have an extra big man, like Jeremy Tyler, who is with the BayHawks and recovering from an injury, than a 6-foot-2 combo guard. So Smith arrived last Monday with something to prove, and he was still adjusting to his teammates and the nuances of the offense Thursday, as practice started and Coach Gene Cross walked five BayHawks through a play while everyone else gathered at the baseline. Smith stood off to the side, fidgeting and checking his fingernails. When the group split off to work at either basket, Smith sat courtside and rubbed his face. Tyler, who had joined the team that morning, rotated in at the other end. After 15 minutes or so, Smith got into the drill and clanked his first shot. Then, running up the lane, he turned, squared his shoulders and, again, clank. He set a screen, broke to the short corner, caught and fired. Again, clank. Out of high school, Smith had been considered a fringe player in the Big East. He committed to Seton Hall but was ruled academically ineligible, and he instead played about a season and a half at Manhattan College, where he was the team's second-leading scorer, averaging 13.4 points, as a sophomore. His dream was to play with his brother. To make the N.B.A., he needed a bigger stage. He transferred to Louisville, walked on there, sat out a year and then played two seasons under Coach Rick Pitino. For one year he was on scholarship, and for the other two his older brother helped pay his tuition, as he averaged 9.7 points and started on the 2012 Final Four team. Cross has known Smith well for more than a year. The Knicks signed Smith after he went unpicked in the 2012 N.B.A. draft. Cross helped out at the Knicks" training camp that year, when Smith left early to have knee surgery. Smith spent the next nine months rehabilitating, some of it at the Knicks" facility. He started playing again in late June and, weeks later, shot 22 percent in five games for the Knicks" summer league team. Cross helped coach that team and was there for training camp, after which Smith, 26, was kept on the Knicks" roster. After practice, asked if Smith had the potential to play in the N.B.A., Cross paused and said: "I think he has the potential to work, to continue to grow and make himself a good ballplayer. And whatever situation he finds himself in, I think he can be successful. But you never know which situation any player will find himself in. Behind him, Tyler was taking extra jumpers. Tyler was the last player off the court. He said his right foot, which was operated on in September, felt fine. Cross expected him to play by early December. In the meantime, Tyler said, he was working on moving his feet in the post, playing hard without fouling, being more vocal and mastering defensive schemes. Smith had been in a sour mood that day, having been asked about Brandon Jennings, the Detroit Pistons guard who questioned his ability over Twitter. Smith said he was a good person, that he had "nothing to prove to anybody," that God was on his side and that was all that mattered. He said there was nothing specific he needed to work on; he just needed to play. Alain Delaquérière contributed research.