Knicks fall to Clippers; Carmelo Anthony takes time to assess his career in New York
New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, left, defends Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, March 20, 2017, in Los Angeles. Credit: AP / Ryan Kang
LOS ANGELES — Carmelo Anthony has been doing a lot of thinking about what’s happened and about his future. The Knicks’ best player misses being in the postseason and sounds like someone who might want a change of scenery.
The Knicks already have locked up a fourth straight losing season and are close to being eliminated from playoff contention for the fourth consecutive year. They dropped seven games out of the Eastern Conference’s last playoff spot with Monday night’s 114-105 loss to the Clippers at Staples Center.
After making the postseason his first 10 years in the league, Anthony, 32, is still chasing playoff success and wonders if it will happen in a Knicks uniform.
“Honestly, I think about it a lot,” he said before scoring 16 points in the opener of a four-game trip. “I try to put everything into perspective. I think about it. I think about [New York], I think postseason, I think about my teammates. I just think about everything.
“It’s not just one specific thing that I think about. I try to hear other people’s advice, other people’s take on it. But at the end of the day, it’s on me.”
Anthony didn’t play in the fourth quarter after the Knicks (27-43) fell behind by 25 in the third. The Knicks got within seven in the final minute, but the Clippers, who sat their starters the entire fourth quarter, never really threatened.
Kristaps Porzingis and Derrick Rose each scored 18 to lead the Knicks. Blake Griffin had 30 points and Chris Paul added 13 points and 13 assists for the Clippers (42-29).
Anthony believed this season would be different after team president Phil Jackson brought in proven veterans Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Courtney Lee and Brandon Jennings. But with the Knicks falling into a familiar place, Anthony gave hints Monday that he might be willing to waive his no-trade clause to get into a winning situation.
His closest friends in the NBA are Paul, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. James and Wade have won championships and Paul has the Clippers heading to the playoffs again. It bothers Anthony that he’s no longer a playoff fixture.
“It makes you want to think about what’s next or what could be next, just thinking about those situations,” he said. “I always think about the times that I’ve had in the postseason, the games and experiences that I’ve had with teams, players. The way that you’ve got to prepare for that. I think about that all the time.
“The competitor that I am, the person that I am — I want to be there. I don’t have to look at somebody else’s situation and say, ‘Oh, I miss that’ or ‘I want that’ or ‘I need that.’ Like, it is what it is. That’s a part of who I’ve — over my 14 years — I’ve made myself part of that. Pride myself on that, in wanting to be in those situations.”
The Knicks tried to trade Anthony before last month’s deadline, speaking to the Clippers, Cavaliers and Celtics, but a deal didn’t materialize that they liked. They are expected to try again this offseason.
The Clippers make sense. Anthony has had a place in Los Angeles for seven years and loves being there. Paul is there, too.
Anthony loves the big stage of Madison Square Garden and playing in New York, but he said nothing lasts forever.
“When I was back in Denver, I was like, ‘Man, I’m never leaving here. I want to be that guy that plays on one team for the rest of his career,’ ” said Anthony, who forced a trade from the Nuggets in 2011. “But the way that the game is, the way that the business is, I think it’s highly impossible to accomplish that, and the guys that do accomplish that, you’ve got to take your hat off to them. A lot of things have to fall into place for that to happen.”
When asked specifically about moving to Los Angeles full-time, Anthony said he can’t think about that right now.
“Don’t start,” he said. “I haven’t thought about it. There was an opportunity during the deadline. There was always talk the past couple of seasons with me somehow being connected, whether it was the Clippers or Lakers. I’ve somehow always been connected. At first it was the Lakers and now it’s the Clippers situation.
“So I try not to think about that, especially now when I’m still playing with the New York Knicks.”
Familiar faces. The last four Knicks coaches were all in the building. Mike Woodson is a Clippers assistant coach, Derek Fisher worked the broadcast for TNT and Kurt Rambis is the Knicks’ associate head coach under Jeff Hornacek.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
