At least Dennis Smith Jr. won’t hear any Garden boos Wednesday night.

Early last season, the Knicks point guard — and key piece in the Kristaps Porzingis trade — heard jeers as he struggled with his shooting, passing and defense.

No matter what happens in Wednesday’s preseason home opener vs. Cleveland, the Garden will be fan-less and silent.

That might be a good thing as Smith continues with this big opportunity to wipe away last season’s stench

Smith took a step back Sunday in Detroit with an off-kilter outing in running the offense, but feels he’s got the right coaches this time to pull him through.

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau has gained a reputation as a point-guard whisperer and his new assistant Johnnie Bryant, previously of the Jazz, is the team’s guards coach with a solid reputation of turning Utah combo guard Donovan Mitchell into an All-Star.
Mitchell was selected four spots after Smith, who was taken ninth by Dallas in the 2017 NBA Draft.

“He just got a wealth of knowledge, on both ends,” Smith said of Bryant. “He just understands the game so well and he studies it so much. It’s little things that he’ll show me and I’m just like, I can’t help but smile because I’ve never thought of it like that.

“I’m like a sponge, I listen to everything he’s saying and I try to put it into the game and be effective with what I’m learning. I’m appreciative, man, he’s always willing to give out game so I listen as much as I can.”

Thibodeau visited Smith in North Carolina after September’s OTAs and is giving him a big opportunity as the backup point guard to Elfrid Payton. New signee Austin Rivers remains out with a groin pull and will miss the four preseason games. It’s a fresh start with Smith changing his jersey number from No. 5 to No. 4, which he wore at North Carolina State.

In the first two preseason games, Smith has averaged 18.6 minutes. Sunday’s outing in Detroit left a lot to be desired. He shot 1 of 5, missed both 3-pointers and was a minus-15 in a ragged 16 minutes.

The Pistons made adjustments after the first game Friday, trapping the pick-and-roll, and Smith looked flummoxed.

“It was different,” Smith said on Zoom after Wednesday’s morning shootaround. “Coach said that’s how the playoffs are. You play a team, you get a day off and you come back and play them. And both teams are going to make adjustments. So the first game, they were going under. The adjustment for the next game was just to blitz the pick-and-roll regardless of where it was. I got to do a better job of seeing early, and then pass the ball, move the ball.

“So next day off, me and JB (Bryant) came in and got some work in, we worked on how to play against the blitz, so that’s the adjustment. Just watch the film, see what I did wrong and come in and try to get better at it.”

No one disputes Smith’s athleticism and ability to get to the basket. But there’s more to being a point guard. Whether he ever gets it as a legitimate floor general will determine if this is it for Smith as a Knick.

The 23-year-old is a restricted free agent this summer and the Knicks attempted to trade him in the offseason.

“I think the task of the point guard remains the same,” Smith said. “Put pressure on the ball, put pressure on the defense as much as I can. Keep setting guys up. It’s an adjustment. We’re a really young team. It’s gonna be times when people aren’t sure where to be. And as a point guard you have to understand the playbook front and back and forth and orchestrate things.’’

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist still is out with an illness and hasn’t made his debut…Frank Ntilikina (Achilles) and Nerlens Noel (knee soreness) will likely miss Wednesday night’s game.