Training camp is still a month away, but when the new-look Knicks convene at the end of September, they won’t be strangers.

For weeks, they have been working out together and connecting through a text chain featuring the entire team. They have trained in Los Angeles, in Florida and most recently at Columbia University to get familiar with each other.

“We want to prove people wrong,” forward Taj Gibson told The Post. “But the message is already there: Let the work show for itself.”

The Knicks whiffed on their big targets this summer, watching Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant sign with the rival Nets. Instead, they signed a number of young players, such as Julius Randle and Bobby Portis, on small contracts to join a nucleus that includes lottery picks RJ Barrett and Kevin Knox and shot-blocking demon Mitchell Robinson.

Gibson, the veteran of the group from Brooklyn, has been impressed by what he’s seen so far.

“Everybody’s in the group chat, everybody’s talking, everybody’s getting together to work out together,” said Gibson, who hosted his 11th annual Back to School Basketball Bash at the Ingersoll Houses in Fort Greene on Saturday. “The eagerness in guys [has stood out], guys are committed, guys are going to let the work show for itself.”

In his 10 years in the league, Gibson has reached the playoffs eight times, advancing to the conference finals once, in 2011 with the Bulls. A physical and reliable 6-foot-9 big man who signed a two-year, $20 million deal to come home, he’s used to big expectations, not what most experts believe lies ahead for the rebuilding Knicks this year. But he doesn’t mind the change. In fact, he’s thrilled to be a Knick, getting the chance to come back home and help mold younger players.

“I just always had it in the back of my mind, it was always one of those places I wanted to go,” said Gibson, who averaged 10.8 points and 6.5 rebounds in 24.1 minutes per game last year for the Timberwolves. “I wasn’t scared of the opportunity. I was waiting for the right opportunity [to come here]. I just jumped on it. I know they’ve had a lot of tough years, but when you win games, the city loves you. I’m looking forward trying to compete and playing hard.”

Saturday was a special day for Gibson, giving back to the community that raised him. Every summer, he hosts this event at the Ingersoll Houses, but there was extra significance because he’s not leaving to represent another city’s this time.

“It’s a dream come true and it’s a blessing, because I grew up a Knicks fan,” he said. “To be back home around my people, it’s amazing.”