Carmelo Anthony missed Christmas because of a sprained left ankle, and Mike Woodson can’t say if he’ll miss Canada, too.
Anthony spent Christmas Day in a brown suit on the Knicks bench. Whether he remains nattily attired again this weekend is anyone’s guess. The Knicks face the Titanic Division-leading Raptors in a vital home-and-home series Friday and Saturday, and the Knicks coach wouldn’t project Anthony’s status. The medical staff had cleared him to play in the Knicks’ 123-94 loss to the Thunder on Wednesday, but he told Woodson he was too sore to go.
Anthony had insisted he would show up for Christmas, but backed out an hour before tip-off and could be seen walking gingerly outside the locker room. He didn’t make himself available to reporters before or after the game.
If Anthony wasn’t willing to gut it out against the Thunder on national TV, it’s unclear if he will want to try a back-to-back set until he gets closer to 100 percent — even if his coach’s job could be imperiled.
“I don’t know, I really don’t,’’ Woodson said of Anthony after the 29-point rout. “We’ll assess it [Thursday] before practice and see where we are.’’
Anthony sprained his ankle in the third quarter Monday against the Magic.
Tyson Chandler defended Anthony’s decision.
“I kind of knew Melo wasn’t going to be able to go,’’ Chandler said. “He turned it good last game. I don’t know anything about X-rays, MRIs. I think he’ll be all right. I figured he’d be a little sore with only a day’s rest, and he flew back, and normally you get swelling.’’
J.R. Smith had assured Anthony would play on Christmas. He was wrong as Anthony missed a game for the first time this season, in what has been his healthiest campaign as a Knick.
“He is a big piece to the puzzle,’’ said Smith, who struggled through an 8-of-22 game. “He is the piece to the puzzle, so it is tough.’’
Chandler hinted Smith tried to do too much without Anthony in the lineup.
“When that happens, there is no one individual that will be able to pick up the scoring,’’ Chandler said. “It has to be a team thing.’’
Said Woodson: “He was really missed [Wednesday] because he is a big part of what we do.’’
Tim Hardaway Jr. picked up some of the scoring slack with 21 points and a 33-foot 3-pointer in the first half. Amar’e Stoudemire had a team-leading 22, but most of that came late, with the game well out of reach.
“If he feels he’s not healthy enough to go, we got to find ways to win without him,’’ Iman Shumpert said of Anthony. “I think it was an opportunity to step up and get comfortable.’’
Kevin Durant, who was defended by Smith, pointed out the Knicks lost by just one point last season when Anthony missed the game between the two teams at the Garden.
“We respect every guy in this league,’’ said Durant, who scored 29 points. “Without their best player, guys are gong to step up. Last year they played without Melo, and they almost beat us.’’