BOSTON — Derek Fisher is hoping Carmelo Anthony rejoins the club soon to serve as an off-the-court leader.
Anthony has stayed away from the Knicks since his knee surgery Thursday. He is still on crutches. The Post reported Monday the surgery repaired an undisclosed partial tear of his left patellar tendon that he played on almost all season.
Fisher said he speaks to Anthony daily, but hasn't seen him since the operation. Fisher hopes Anthony will soon return to extend some leadership to a 10-46 club that is bare bones and crying for a veteran presence with Anthony done and Amar'e Stoudemire nopw with Dallas.
"I think eventually he will [be with the team],'' Fisher said. "Once he's cleared to start moving around, he'll be around the team and back at the facility as his rehab picks up. He's looking forward to being back around the team from a leadership standpoint. Even though physically he's not able to play, the team still feels his impact. He's a smart basketball player. His eyes and ears can help a lot of guys out there.
"I'm checking on him each day, making sure he's good. We're looking forward to seeing him back.''
Anthony won't be allowed to scrimmage for four to six months. That Anthony played on a torn tendon brings a new perspective to his season of struggles, which was also marred by back spasms. He played 40-of-53 games — plus the All-Star Game — before he shut it down.
"I don't think any of us doubt he was limited with his movement due to his knee and the back spasms that popped up in Houston,'' Fisher said. "It was a disjointed stretch for him physically. We saw a lot of those limitations. But some of it was also trying to fit into what we were doing [in the triangle offense] and trying to balance how we're playing now and not do too much to overexert himself to make sure we have balance as a team.''
Anthony averaged 24.2 points on 44 percent shooting, 6.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists. His offensive rebounding, ability to get to the foul line and help with defense was most affected by the tear in his knee.
Jose Calderon is battling a sore Achilles tendon.Photo: NBAE via Getty Images
"When he's back, he'll be able to find that balance right from the beginning and not spend a lot of time trying to figure it out,'' Fisher said. "He's looking forward to the day when he can just play and not think about what's going on physically.''
Jose Calderon left the locker room with his left foot in a walking boot with what was termed a sore Achilles tendon. Calderon said more testing will be done. He said he's felt pain there for "a few weeks'' and it worsened after getting hit on a layup attempt in the first half.
Calderon said the pain is sharper, which is why he wore the boot for precautionary reasons.
Knicks rookie Cleanthony Early had been shooting bricks recently so Fisher has told him make an impact somewhere else, even play with the same passion he displayed during his career at Wichita State.
It seemed to help as Early had a better game. He had eight points, four rebounds, two steals and shot 4-for-7 from the field.
With Anthony out, Fisher has vowed to give Phil Jackson's first draft pick the playing time needed to work through his mistakes and started him last week.
Early is shooting just 33 percent.
"We talked to him about not worrying about the shot as much as a young player, to find what it is you can do to help the team,'' Fisher said. "Defensive energy and being a guy who plays with passion is what attracted everyone to him and why we drafted him. Those are the things we want to see from Cle every night. And if he makes a shot, we'll take that as well."
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