Carmelo Anthony was on the bench early in the fourth quarter and could be seen putting his head down, shaking it in disgust, as Nets point guard Deron Williams buried another open jumper. Inexplicably, Pablo Prigioni and Andrea Bargnani had darted away from Williams as he launched and Anthony couldn’t contain his emotions.
If a picture is worth a thousand words …
Anthony was ticked afterward, too, that the Knicks didn’t battle.
“That’s the only thing that bothers me,’’ Anthony said after the Knicks’ 103-80 loss to the Nets. “I felt we didn’t fight as a team. Them guys from the jump ball just came in and it felt like they owned us.”
Anthony is expected to opt out of his contract this summer to test the free-agent market, so his moods are of consequence. Mostly, it has been dour as the Knicks are on pace for 30 wins at the season’s midpoint. In his 10-year career, Anthony has never missed the playoffs.
“I didn’t think we would be in this situation,’’ he said. “I really don’t know how to deal with a situation like this. I am learning. It is the first time for me. We got to keep going. We have a lot more games to play.’’
The Knicks are on a four-game slide and despite Anthony’s heady numbers, the team can’t get traction. He posted 26 points with 12 rebounds on Monday. But it was a blemished performance as he missed five free throws (8 of 13) and committed two first-quarter turnovers. He got no support. The Knicks’ three best offensive players after Anthony, Andrea Bargnani (2 of 6), Raymond Felton (2 of 11) and J.R. Smith (4 of 12), combined to shoot 8 of 29.
Asked if he was getting worried, Anthony said: “I don’t like losing. I don’t want to lose. Worried? I am not worried. I am not at that point yet because I still feel we can figure it out.’’
With Prigioni returning Monday, third-string point guard Beno Udrih has asked the Knicks to see if he can be traded, according to ESPN.com.
The Knicks have four point guards, with rookie Toure’ Murry pressing the disgruntled Udrih so the Knicks find him expendable — perhaps for a draft pick.
Metta World Peace, who could be back within a week from his platelet-rich plasma therapy, defended Smith and believes the NBA was too harsh to fine him $50,000 for his series of shoelace capers.
The always flaky World Peace said the incident happened to him earlier in his career and he has also been known to do weird stuff — once throwing Trevor Ariza’s loose shoe into the crowd and pulling down Paul Pierce’s shorts. Knicks coach Mike Woodson and brass didn’t find Smith’s antics amusing either as he was benched twice in the aftermath.
“I thought what J.R. did was funny,’’ World Peace said. “Trevor Ariza’s shoe, I threw it into the stands. And I’ve pulled Paul Pierce’s shorts down. Those things are like fun and entertaining. A computer made that decision. Only computers make those decisions.’’
World Peace said he was once a shoelace victim.
“Somebody did that to me before and it made a knot,’’ he said. “They tried to loosen it but made a knot and I had to come out of the game. I had to bite the thing.’’
World Peace revealed he’d have his fifth and last blood injection to complete the two-week PRP process to heal his arthritic left knee. He could be back this week. However, World Peace went on to say he’s not going to press it.
“I’ m not going to rush,’’ he said. “New York City, they rush everything. It’s life. It happens when it happens. Take your time. Relax. Slow down the music. Too much techno [music]. It’s like sex. Take your time. Where you going? Just relax. Enjoy love.’’