SALT LAKE CITY — Carmelo Anthony is aiming to return for the Knicks’ game tomorrow night against the Magic at the Garden. With his right knee freshly drained, the star forward yesterday said he is no longer impaired by stiffness in the knee, but still needs to get stronger before playing.
A jovial Anthony broke his silence, confirming The Post’s report the knee drainage procedure revealed no cartilage damage that would require offseason surgery or be a long-term issue.
Anthony, who sat out his third straight game last night as the Knicks beat the Jazz 90-83 in the West Coast trip finale, revealed the fluid buildup that affected him for nearly a month — often a sign of cartilage damage — came from a strained hamstring he sustained earlier this season.
“I feel better, much better. It’s gone — night and day,’’ Anthony said of the stiffness. “I can feel the difference. Just being able to move laterally. Jump. Hopefully [I can] get back to what I was doing.”
Anthony, who spoke after doing intense shooting drills at Energy Solutions Arena with shooting coach Dave Hopla, has missed six of the last eight games with the right-knee issue.
Anthony said that on Thursday, the day of the procedure, he was still not feeling quite right. The day after, he said he felt like a new man. On Saturday, during the Knicks’ practice at UCLA, Anthony realized he wasn’t quite ready to play.
“Since the day after, I’ve felt it was back to normal,’’ Anthony said. “It’s just getting the pop and power back in the knee.’’
Anthony is relieved he knows the cause of the fluid buildup. Medical experts told The Post last week fluid could be a sign of flaking of articular cartilage, which would need to be cleaned out by arthroscopic surgery.
“It was from a slight hamstring pull,’’ Anthony said, “because it was in the back of the knee. It didn’t have anything to do with the actual knee, the ligaments. I tweaked a hamstring and fluid just drained down.
“I think it was from overcompensating my knee with my hamstring and trying to use one without the other. Just playing on it, not getting no rest and not taking care of it ahead of time. Like I said, I was being naïve with myself and it happened.”
If the Knicks are going to stave off the Nets for first place in the Atlantic Division and maintain home-court for the first round of the playoffs, they will need Anthony in the final 17 games to be playing at the level that made him an MVP candidate in December.
Anthony’s reputation has taken a hit the past two weeks, starting when he walked off the court in Cleveland with the team down 22 points after a spill. (The Knicks rallied for the win without him.)
Anthony sat out three games, then returned for the West Coast trip, playing in Oakland and Denver, where his homecoming turned into an unmitigated disaster. With Anthony stinking up his former workplace, he quit on the game early in the third quarter of the Nuggets’ rout and said he was going home to New York. He shot 7 of 27 in those two Western games.
“I’m good, I’m good now,’’ Anthony said. “My knee feels good now. That was the only thing holding me back.’’
There are no more excuses for Anthony, whose first two seasons ended in first-round playoff KOs. J.R. Smith warned after the Clippers debacle another early exit could be looming if things don’t change. The Knicks were outscored a combined 80 points in the first four games of the road trip.
“Even though we’re having a tough road trip, our minds are still right,’’ Anthony said. “Our confidence is still there. We’re third in the Eastern Conference. We’re trying to get everyone back healthy. Tyson [Chandler], myself, trying to get everyone healthy to make this run.’’
* Jason Kidd (seven points, five assists, 28 minutes) left the locker room with his left wrist wrapped in ice. X-rays were negative.
* Tyson Chandler’s neck is a growing concern.
Mike Woodson said his starting center, who is suffering from a strained muscle in his neck, will be examined when the Knicks get back to New York and will need an MRI exam to rule out a serious injury.
“Obviously it’s bothering him,” the coach said. “We’ve got to get him examined when we get back. We’ll play that by ear.”
Chandler, also suffering from a bruised left knee, missed his third straight game. Prior to that, he had not missed a game.