The ball dropped in Times Square on New Year’s Eve. On New Year’s night, the Knicks dropped the ball at the Garden in Amar’e Stoudemire’s return.
There is much work to be done to get Stoudemire up to speed and last night it cost the Knicks in a 105-100 loss to the Trail Blazers, but there will be better days ahead if Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony can figure out how to work together on the floor.
Stoudemire was welcomed back with a standing ovation as he came off the bench with 3:31 to go in the first quarter, and finished the night with six points on 3-for-8 shooting after missing his first five shots. The first time he touched the ball he turned it over, and he had only one rebound. The game ended with Stoudemire on the bench, with two ice packs on his knees.
The Trail Blazers led wire-to-wire as they dealt the Knicks and the Garden fans a major hangover.
With Stoudemire out, the Knicks made a dramatic comeback, but came up short when Anthony missed what would have been a tying 3-pointer with 15.9 seconds remaining.
“I almost shed a tear when I walked on the court, it was a phenomenal feeling,’’ Stoudemire said of the standing ovation after his 16 minutes and 41 seconds of work. “I haven’t quite felt anything like that before in my career. The fans were patient with me and waiting for me to return.’’
A lot of rust has to be knocked off for Stoudemire to get his starting position back, and the fans will have to be patient as Anthony and Stoudemire figure out how to be a force together. The Knicks have struggled with those two in the lineup. Can they play and win together?
This was only their first time out this season, so that needs to be taken into account, but the Knicks were minus-seven last night when the two were on the floor together through a span of a little more than 11 minutes. Yes, Anthony scored 45 points, but during his time with Stoudemire on the court, he scored only one basket.
This is exhibition season in January.
The best news was Stoudemire made it through the night with no problems involving his left knee. There were highlights, including a nice feed from Anthony on a pick-and-roll for Stoudemire’s first basket — an example of the two stars working together. There also was a thunderous dunk off a pass from Pablo Prigioni.
Anthony believes having Stoudemire back will all work out in time.
“The system we have, you can put anybody in the system and it will work,” Anthony said. “The adjustment is he’s coming off the bench now rather than starting. That’s the adjustment for everybody. That’s the easy part. As players we’re not worried about that.’’
Several times in the first half Stoudemire was open on pick-and-rolls but was ignored by teammates, who do not yet have the timing for Stoudemire’s game.
If the Knicks are going to get where they want to go, they will need Stoudemire. They will need Amar’e and Melo to come together. The spacing is not there. The lateral movement on defense is not there for Stoudemire, but over time that should come. If it doesn’t, the Knicks will be in trouble.
Woodson is all about defense. Several times he pulled Stoudemire aside to go over his poor defense, like a high school coach instructing a new varsity player.
“I felt good, but the game felt like it was going 100 miles per hour that first half,’’ Stoudemire said. “The second half was better than my first half. Hopefully my second game will be better than my first.’’
Through their first 30 games, the Knicks were 21-9 without Stoudemire and Anthony played out of this world, but for the Knicks to get where they really want to go, Stoudemire has to be a force, too.
Don’t expect fast miracles.
“I haven’t played in nine months, so Coach was showing me different schemes,’’ Stoudemire said. “It was great teaching on his part.’’
The lessons continue with this morning’s film session
kevin.kernan@nypost.com