Carmelo Anthony Told JR Smith it’s Time to Mature

Mike Woodson isn’t the only New York Knick working on JR Smith’s brain. Teammate Carmelo Anthony had a frank conversation with Smith following his disastrous postseason and summer, and hopes JR can turn things around. Per the NY Post: “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. […] ‘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.’ […] 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.”