NBA

Blunt advice: Melo tells J.R. to turn life around

Besides being the face of the franchise and it’s go-to guy in crunch time, the Knicks have another reason to make sure Carmelo Anthony doesn’t go elsewhere this spring when his contract runs out.

Who would replace him as the team shrink?

When word spread troubled guard J.R. Smith was suspended five games for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy in September, resulting in a five-game suspension for smoking marijuana, Anthony spoke to his longtime teammate, offering tough love and stern words of advice.

“I had a heart-to-heart with him, we had a talk that two men should have,” Anthony said Thursday. “It seemed like he took what I was saying. We shall see.”

The gist of the conversation, Anthony recalled, was “the time is now.”

“You have to want to help yourself. Everybody else wants to help you, but if you don’t want to help yourself that’s defeating the purpose,” said Anthony, speaking at the Tools for Teachers Initiative in Brooklyn, where teachers from all five boroughs were given supplies to distribute to their students, courtesy of the Carmelo Anthony Foundation and DJS Real Estate Development.

Anthony knows the Knicks need Smith, the erratic shooting guard and reigning Sixth Man of the Year, to be at his best if they are going to repeat as Atlantic Division champions and make noise in the playoffs. When the Knicks were at their height last year — both during their 18-5 start and in their fast finish to the regular season — it was Smith serving as Robin to Anthony’s Batman, hitting three buzzer-beaters, showing restraint at both ends of the floor and playing inspired defense.

“He was a big glue to our team,” Anthony said of Smith, who underwent surgery this summer to repair a torn meniscus and patellar tendon after signing a three-year deal to remain with the Knicks. “He was a big part of our team’s success. He knows that. He had a long offseason, thinking about what’s been going on, and trying to get back, and hopefully he turned over that new leaf.”

It was a difficult offseason for Smith, from the suspension to the knee surgery. He accepted blame for the Eastern Conference semifinal series loss to the Pacers, when he shot 28 percent from the field and was outplayed by Brooklyn product Lance Stephenson. Even worse was being sidelined, unable to get out his frustration on the court.

“It was an extremely long process,” Smith said. “Not being able to play basketball for four-plus months is probably the toughest thing I’ve ever done. I’m used to playing every day, whenever I want.”

Coach Mike Woodson seemed confident Smith will be able to make his preseason debut Friday night against the Bobcats at the renovated Garden, after running and joining his teammates in contact drills.

“He’s ready to go,” Woodson said of Smith. “I thought that he proved that the other day in Toronto when he had his first serious contact. [Thursday] was the same. We’ll get him out there [Friday], but we won’t play him a lot of minutes.”

Smith said his knee feels fine, and he wasn’t even thinking about it during practice. He is unsure how long it will take to regain his explosiveness, one of the traits that have made him such a dynamic scorer. For now, Smith isn’t worried about dunking on anyone — he’s focused on getting back on the court Friday night, and rejoining his teammates after serving his five-game suspension, making the wrongs of the postseason right.

“It’s going to be fun, finally to put the jersey on,” Smith said. “I’m tired of watching these guys going up and down the court. I’m just so antsy to get out there, be able to vocally [share] what I see on the bench and relay that on to the court, to young guys, older guys. It’s going to be great for myself mentally

“When you physically can’t do it, it’s one of those things, you’re mentally out of it. It feels good [to be back]. I have my head in a good place.”

The Knicks hope it remains there. In fact, their season may depend on it. Good thing Dr. Anthony is around.