It’s still Carmelo Anthony’s team, Derrick Rose says. He’s just here to get Anthony winning again.
Rose survived his first Knicks practice Tuesday, saying he “feels like a rookie again.’’ Last September’s opening day of training camp in Chicago became a disaster when Taj Gibson elbowed Rose in the eye and he suffered an orbital fracture.
“My job is to come here and help him win,’’ Rose said of Anthony. “This is his team. In practice I’ll push him and be on him when he’s being lazy and vice versa. There’s no bad blood. I’m just here to help him win.
“My job is to make his job easy,’’ Rose added. “I’m not coming in for my stats. I don’t care about my stats. As long as we win, I can sleep easy at night.’’
Unless settled out of court, Rose’s impending $21.5 million civil trial in a sexual assault case could stand in the way of a smooth transition as a Knick. The trial starts Oct. 4 and could last a week. The Post reported Friday the police’s open criminal investigation, launched a year ago, could escalate if Rose is found guilty in the civil suit.
Staying focused, Rose says, is not an issue.
“That will be easy,’’ Rose said. “I’m not saying that because I know how sensitive the topic and subject is. It’s because I’m in the space I’m in now only focused on basketball and my son. Those are the only two things I’m worried about. All the other stuff I have a great team that’s handling that.”
Rose, obtained in late June via trade, went out of his way in the offseason to befriend Anthony. He joined Anthony for four days in late August in Puerto Rico, where Anthony’s foundation hosts charity events.
“It was all about breaking the ice with him,’’ Rose said. “I didn’t want to break the ice with him here in camp. Being part of his foundation, seeing him as a person. He brought his wife and family. I wanted to meet him before we got here.”
There was basketball but mostly rest and relaxation.
“Most of the time I was on the resort I went to functions here and there, but most of the time I was on the beach,’’ Rose said. “He didn’t complain at all. He just wanted me there.’’
During his exit interview last April after a third straight non-playoff season, Anthony lobbied for Knicks president Phil Jackson to land a premier point guard. After one practice, Anthony already sees the fire back in Rose’s healed eyes.
“I’m more excited for him than he is for himself,’’ Anthony said. “I love comeback stories, love guys counted out, back against the wall who have an opportunity to go out there and prove themselves. You can see a different Derrick than the past couple of years. There’s a different look on his face.’’
Rose said the Knicks’ personnel could make them “scary when we’re clicking,’’ adding, “The sky’s the limit.’’
“It should just be easy [for Anthony] with the way I play and how teams guard me,’’ Rose said. “They usually put two guys on me and bigs don’t let me go all the way to the rim. We should have a lot of open knockdown shots and he’s a knockdown shooter.”
After missing training camp last year, Rose returned to play 66 games — a nice step back after three knee surgeries. But he knows last season could have been more productive if not for the eye issue.
“Coming back, I had double vision,’’ said Rose, who averaged 16.4 points and 4.7 assists. “I could see but I still had people criticizing and critiquing my game. I wasn’t even 100 percent. I wasn’t even 80 percent. I didn’t want to lose my conditioning and was out there playing and competing. Along the way, people still found a way to critique my game. If anything, it made me a lot better. I finished the second half of the season pretty well.’’
As this camp commenced, Rose said he feels like a rookie because of “a lot of change.’’
“Learning a new system, new city, new teammates, where Melo likes the ball,’’ he said. “Not just Melo but guys coming off the bench. Trying to learn everybody. I’ve got to figure these things out right away.”
He already has figured out the potential of 7-foot-3 Kristaps Porzingis in his second season.
“I’m going to always find a way to get him the ball,’’ Rose said.