One of the newest Knicks can lean on his high school coach for some pointers on what to expect next.
Jaylen Martin, a 6-foot-6 wing who took the Overtime Elite route to go pro, went undrafted on Thursday night. But shortly afterward, he agreed to a two-way deal with the Knicks, meaning he will split time between them and their G-League affiliate, the Westchester Knicks.
One thing working in his favor is one of his confidantes is none other than former Knick Charlie Ward.
“My advice for him is to keep working and keep doing what got him here,” Ward told The Post in a phone interview on Friday. “It’s been a journey for him. He’s gotten a lot better. He’s a slasher. He has good size and he can defend and score the ball. … He still has to improve in a lot of areas like all young players have to in his position.”
Ward was drafted by the Knicks in the first round in 1994, and played in New York for 10 seasons.
He coached Martin for three years at Florida High, before Martin joined Overtime Elite, a new high school league that pays players.
During the process, the 54-year-old Ward spoke to members of the Knicks’ front office about Martin.
The team also watched Martin play numerous times during the Overtime Elite season.
When Martin opted to sign with Overtime Elite, he was a four-star recruit with numerous high-major college options, including Florida, Georgetown, Mississippi and Texas Tech.
Ward said he saw a lot of plusses in the decision to eschew college ball, in particular Martin learning both to play with other very talented players and what it was going to take for him to get to the next level.
Asked what Martin has to do to become an NBA player, Ward said it is important the Tallahassee, Fla., native continues on his current path, in terms of being a valuable commodity on both ends of the floor.
Ward raved about the 19-year-old Martin’s two-way ability and his understanding of the game.
He said Martin doesn’t force the issue, and has a patient approach. Martin’s coach with Overtime Elite, Timothy Fanning, raved about his jump shot. Martin averaged 14.0 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals this past year while shooting 49.1 percent from the field.
Martin will have plenty of opportunities to showcase his game in the upcoming summer league next month in Las Vegas.
The Knicks didn’t have any draft picks this year and only one last year, second-round pick Trevor Keels.
“He did a lot for himself in the year. He’s young and he’s really just starting to scratch the surface in terms of what he’s capable of doing,” Fanning said. “He’s 19 years old, and he’s got a tremendous work ethic. He really came on strong this season.”
The Knicks’ schedule for the summer league in Las Vegas was released on Friday.
They will open up against the 76ers on July 8 at 5 p.m., face the Nets the next day on July 9 at 5:30 p.m. and also take on the Magic (July 12) and Celtics (July 14).
Their final game will be determined at a later date.