Although Carmelo Anthony muffed his chance at becoming a Halloween hero Thursday night in Chicago, the Knicks departed the Windy City with a tailwind of confidence.
That’s largely because 7-foot-1 center Tyson Chandler may be primed for the type of season he had when he guided the Mavericks to the championship in 2011.
Even if Anthony isn’t yet playing at the level he was to begin last season, the Knicks (1-1) look to be in good position as they gear up for Sunday’s Garden match against the improved Timberwolves.
After taking the Bulls down to the final seconds in a heartbreaking 82-81 loss, the Knicks actually showed signs they could be as good if not better than last season’s 54-win club. In 2012-13, the Knicks couldn’t sniff a win against the Bulls, losing four straight times and getting outmuscled.
That didn’t happen Thursday, thanks to Chandler’s 19 rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass. The Knicks stood toe-to-toe with a Bulls team some general managers and experts project will topple the Heat and get out of the East, now that they have Derrick Rose back.
The Knicks didn’t have their potential starting shooting guard, J.R. Smith, who served the first two games of his five-contest marijuana suspension.
“We did it without a key piece in our offense,’’ Chandler said. “Once we implement [Smith] in, I see us as pretty dangerous.’’
The Knicks allowed 83 points to Milwaukee in their season-opening win — when Chandler had five blocks — and 82 to the Bulls, who were held to 11 fourth-quarter points. They defended Rose fiercely, even on his game-winning floater from the right baseline over a helping Chandler and point guard Raymond Felton.
“The way we played [Thursday], we’re going to win our share of games if we play like this,’’ Chandler said. “Top team, home opener, with all the energy, we were able to weather the storm and make a run at it in the end.’’
Chandler, who turned 31 during training camp last month, is eyeing this as his renaissance season. He has been outspoken about letting the team down in the playoffs last spring.
In fact, in Chandler’s two playoff appearances as a Knick, he has been under the weather. In the 2012 first-round series against Miami, he contracted the flu before Game 1 and couldn’t shake it.
Down the stretch last season, Chandler missed 16 of the final 20 regular-season games to rest a strained ligament in his neck. During his time away from the team, he contracted strep throat from his daughter and lost 12 pounds entering the playoffs.
Without his usual strength, stamina or energy, Chandler was obliterated by the Pacers’ Roy Hibbert during the second round series. He also was seen more as complainer than leader, criticizing the offense for a lack of ball movement, believed to be pinning it on Smith. His mission is to atone for last spring’s sins.
“I’m getting back to where I was the first year I came here,’’ Chandler said Thursday night. “[I’m] getting blocks of late. But I just want to alter shots when the opportunity presents itself.
“I feel good now, physically. I feel a lot stronger, explosive, really attacking the offensive glass to give my team second chances as well as controlling the paint.’’
A defensive coach, Mike Woodson realizes Chandler’s value is as great as Anthony’s.
“He has a lot of his pop back,’’ Woodson said of Chandler. “In terms of his movement and rebounding and blocking shots, it was great to see him play like that. He’s going to have to be that way every time we step out on the floor.’’
In an intriguing workout video, Chandler said to haunting background music: “I have a sour taste in my mouth from last season. I feel I left something on the table personally. You take it into summer and use it as motivation. There’s no offseason for me because there’s always someone else working.
“Honestly, I never felt I accomplished my goals. Ultimately my goal is to win a championship in New York. I’ve got a long ways to go and I have to be physically and mentally ready to go the distance. That’s what drives me every day.”
So far, Chandler is living up to his video.