SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Knicks coach Derek Fisher almost never calls out a player directly to the media, but he clearly sent a message to the struggling Carmelo Anthony following Wednesday’s disgraceful loss in Salt Lake City.
Before the Knicks’ 99-97 loss to the Kings on Thursday night, in which Anthony missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer, Melo had a dismal night in Utah, shooting 3-of-11 and finishing with 12 points. Anthony had shot 35 percent over the past six games. His overall shooting percentage had fallen to 40.3 percent.
Anthony was better against the Kings, scoring 23 points on 8-for-21 shooting, but still couldn’t deliver in the end.
He also looked much more engaged than he did in Utah, when he was not joining the huddles during second-half timeouts. Nevertheless, an encouraging scene was his sitting next to rookie phenom Kristaps Porzingis, who had his worst outing, during the second-half blowout by the Jazz.
Fisher did not seem bothered by Anthony’s statistics. Almost never critical of Anthony, Fisher seemed irritated by a decline in his star’s defensive tenacity against the Jazz and perhaps other intangibles: setting screens, fighting through screens, moving the ball, body language. Anthony finished with just two assists and had five rebounds — none on the offensive glass — while Gordon Hayward destroyed him with 13 first-quarter points (24 points total). Anthony never got close to him.
“The shooting percentage maybe isn’t there,’’ Fisher said of Anthony’s numbers. “But overall it’s a collective energy from our group. That’s the biggest issue. The shooting will always go up and down. For Melo, it’s not any different. You got to find ways to do winning things when it’s not going so well, when the stats aren’t going for you.’’
Anthony sounded urgent after the Utah travesty, even if he didn’t look so during the game. He has talked often about having the club play at a faster pace — the way the game has evolved. The Knicks rank last in the league in fast-break points.
“We got to figure this out quick,’’ Anthony said. “I’ve been in this situation before. I’ve experienced this feeling every day trying to explain the same thing over and over.“At the end of the day, it comes down to wanting it or not and having pride in each individual involved. You can blame it on X’s and O’s. But if we don’t have pride as a team and individuals, it’s not going to happen.’’
Anthony has spoken about his surgically repaired left knee still being an issue in regaining his previous form. There remains a portion of the fan base that wants Anthony traded before his value drops.
Anthony has a no-trade clause, but he made an odd remark this week that Dallas’ Deron Williams had resuscitated his career because he left New York and found “clarity.’’ Could Anthony also have been referring to his own need for a change?
Continuing his sharp tone Wednesday, Fisher, while not singling Anthony out, said if a player doesn’t want to “go hard’’ every night, he doesn’t belong on the Knicks.
“The message is, this is where you find out what you’re made of,’’ Fisher said. “It’s easy to hold your head, poke your chest out and tell everybody how good you are when it’s going well. You really find out what you’re made of when things aren’t going so well.
“The guys that are interested in strapping up, going hard, working hard and getting better, those are the guys we want. If you’re not interested in that, then this is not the place. We continue to make sure that’s the level of accountability we’re putting out.’’
Unsolicited, Fisher said in his opening remark of Wednesday’s postgame press conference he would consider a lineup change Thursday, but decided to maintain the status quo with starters Anthony, Porzingis, Jose Calderon, Arron Afflalo and Robin Lopez. But the coach said he is “constantly evaluating.’’