New York Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr. claimed neither he nor his family ever received "cash from anyone at NC State," according to records released by the school to Joe Giglio and Dan Kane of The Raleigh News & Observer.
The 21-year-old told NC State officials in an April 30 interview he had no relationship with former Adidas consultant T.J. Gassnola and wasn't aware of the allegations against him.
The NCAA has accused Gassnola of providing $40,000 from Adidas to former Wolfpack assistant Orlando Early. The money was allegedly given to Smith's family in October 2015.
Smith maintained he committed to NC State because his grandmother was a longtime fan and wanted him to play there, according to the records. The former ACC Freshman of the Year suggested he wouldn't have been driving her car while attending the school if he'd accepted any sort of payment.
NC State received a notice of allegations from the NCAA in July regarding its recruitment of Smith. Ex-head coach Mark Gottfried and Early both received Level I violations - the most severe infraction under NCAA rules.
The school was the first domino to fall in the FBI's recent investigation into corruption in college basketball. The NCAA on Monday issued a notice of allegations to Kansas regarding significant violations within its men's basketball program.
Smith averaged 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, and 1.9 steals during his freshman season in 2016-17 - his lone campaign with the Wolfpack - en route to All-ACC second-team honors.
