KANT’ STAND

Newest Knick wanted to take knee at Garden

Enes Kanter has been labeled an outlaw and traitor in his own country because of his opposition to the Turkish government. His passport was revoked and his father was reportedly imprisoned.

So Kanter knows about sacrificing for the sake of expression, and it was no surprise Tuesday when he said his preference was to take a knee during the national anthem.

“If they would’ve left it up to me, yes, I would’ve tak- en a knee,” Kanter said after his debut with the Knicks. “But as a team, we decided not to take a knee. The most important thing in America is equality and justice. If you don’t see these two things in America, I feel really bad, I feel really sad inside.”

With Joakim Noah and Lance Thomas leading the conversation, the Knicks decided to lock arms during the anthem and supplement the dis- play with a statement about raising awareness for multiple social issues. It followed the NBA’s guidelines for anthem etiquette, and meant the Knicks would avoid punishment.

But Kanter, who was traded last month from OKC, discussed following Colin Kaepernick.

“I was just talking with one of my teammates, saying, ‘If you’re going to do it, I’ll do it,’ ” Kanter said. “I understand that the NBA just put out a statement saying nobody is taking a knee or whatever. But I’m really feeling bad for people out there that’s fighting for what’s right. I think what they’re fighting for is what’s right. I have problems with my own country. I feel like whatever we believe, fight for it. Because if you look at America, there’s freedom of speech, and you can protest peacefully.”

Noah, who did not play Tuesday, told the Daily News that the Knicks will continue to lock arms throughout the season, “100 percent.” He added that the players constructed the statement, which was released to the media before the game.

“We decided we wanted to put out a message, and we came up with the message as a team, and we wanted to do something, that’s for sure,” Noah said. “We all feel the injustice and we wanted to have a symbol as a team. We put out a message so that people understood that we weren’t just locking arms.”

Still, locking arms has become a common posture for players who want to stage a mild protest without the appearance of disrespect. In the statement, the Knicks avoided the word “protest” altogether.

“We have a deep love and respect for this country,” it read. “The United States has given us so much including an unbelievable opportunity and platform to stand up for that’s right. Today, our country faces serious issues including gun violence, poverty, equal justice, access to education, and civil rights,” it read. “Together as a team, we will stand during the national anthem with lined arms not just as a sign of unity but also to call attention to these issues.”

There was also a nod to the military.

“Standing together, by addressing these issues, that is how we honor the sacrifices made to defend liberties.”

Not long before the preseason opener, the league sent out a memo warning players of potential punishment if they didn’t stand for the anthem. Nobody has tested the mandate. But Kanter wanted to.

“We did it as a team. If they’d have left it up to me, I’d have taken a knee. But as a team, we stuck together. But the most important thing is the leave our differences on the table and try to find what we have in common. Tall, short, black, white, fat, skinny, whatever you are, we need to work together.”