Knicks' Anthony says knee feels great, he's 'starving'

Great news for New York Knicks fans: forward Carmelo Anthony says he's fully recovered from the knee injury that forced him to miss 42 games last season.

"I feel great. My knee feels great. I feel at ease. I feel at peace. Mentally, emotionally, I feel at peace. I'm hungry, man. I'm starving,” Anthony told NBA TV at Team USA's minicamp in Las Vegas earlier this week, as relayed by Ken Berger of CBS.

Anthony went under the knife in February to alleviate nagging left knee soreness. Initially slated to miss four-to-six months, his participation in camp places him on the latter half of that estimate.

With a clean bill of health and a handful of roster upgrades, the 31-year-old Anthony can look forward to a bounce-back season with the Knicks. Having missed the playoffs the last two seasons, Anthony is hungry for a return to the postseason.

Anthony is pleased with the moves his organization made this summer, while Knicks president Phil Jackson has great expectations for the All-Star in leading his creation. New York's projected starting lineup looks significantly better than the one it frequently deployed last season.

Despite his injuries and a lack of support from teammates, Anthony mustered sterling averages of 24.2 points and 6.6 rebounds on 44.4 percent shooting from the field in the 40 games he played.