Knicks shoot down report they recruited Carmelo

Barbara Barker reporting from Knicks camp for Alan Hahn,  who is packing a bag full of sknny jeans for his European trip.

Knicks president  Donnie Walsh shot down a report in ESPN that said the Nuggets are refusing to deal with the Knicks because they are upset that the team did  "back-channel" recruiting Carmelo Anthony over the summer

"Oh no. I don't think that's true," Walsh said during the team's morning practice. "My undersanding is they don't want to deal with us because they don't think we have the players that fit their team."

No one seems to be quite sure what "back-channel" recruiting is. Carmelo and Knick Amar'e Stoudemire are friends and recently shared a suite togther at a Jay-Z concert at Yankee Stadium. It is not illegal, however, for players from different teams to hang out together.

 Barbara Barker, aka meanbarb on twitter