PORTLAND, Ore. — Amar’e Stoudemire still has hope his run of greatness is not over. Appreciative of James Dolan’s comments about him in Friday’s Post and buoyed by his play against the Wizards on Saturday, Stoudemire said he hoped to repay Dolan with a splashy end to his career.
“My mission is to become a great player and hopefully become a future Hall of Famer,’’ Stoudemire said. “My goal is to do it in New York — to finish out my career here. That’s the goal. That’s the mission — trying to get better and better and try to dodge injuries.’’
After the loss to the Wizards on Saturday night, coach Mike Woodson said the “only positive’’ was Stoudemire’s 5-for-5, 12-point, 21-minute outing. It was overshadowed by the Knicks’ fifth straight loss and their 3-9 start.
Woodson said Sunday he plans to suit up Stoudemire against the Blazers on Monday at Moda Center. It would be just the second time this season Stoudemire would have played in consecutive games. In eight games this season, Stoudemire is averaging 4.6 points and 2.5 rebounds in 12.5 minutes per game.
Dolan said he had no regrets over the five-year, uninsured $100 million contract he gave to Stoudemire, though the deal has been panned from the nation’s capital to the Pacific Northwest because of Stoudemire’s spate of knee, back and fire-extinguisher injuries.
Dolan told The Post he believes Stoudemire, the six-time All-Star, was the integral first step in the ability to build a roster that added two All-Stars in Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler.
“We would not be where we are today without Amar’e,’’ Dolan said. “Amar’e agreed to come to the Knicks, gave us a launch pad by which we could convince the other guys like Tyson to come, and ultimately Carmelo to come play with us. Do I think Carmelo would have come if we didn’t have Amar’e? No, I don’t think he would’ve.’’
The perception is Dolan should have given Stoudemire just three guaranteed years.
“We both made somewhat of a bond when I first got here,’’ Stoudemire said. “My mission was to bring New York basketball back. To bring flavor and entertainment back to the city. I was the only player to live in the city at the time. I took on New York and was able to create the excitement back in the town.’’
Perhaps Saturday in Washington will be another launching pad. Stoudemire looked sharp with his post moves, explosive with his dunks and said his knees felt good after. However, it could be just a tease to his next knee operation.
“My reaction was mutual,’’ Stoudemire said when asked about what Dolan had said. “I genuinely have a love for Mr. Dolan. We’re in this thing together. We’re trying to win here in New York. That’s the game plan still.’’
Woodson said he would keep the same starting lineup because the unit had a solid first half against the Wizards. … One calculation shows the Carmelo Anthony-Andrea Bargnani pairing was minus-11 vs. Washington and minus-55 on the season.