MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Carmelo Anthony has been selected a Knicks captain, according to a team source.
Anthony was named captain during the club’s Christmas party. Amar’e Stoudemire was the lone captain last season. Coach Mike D’Antoni elected against giving Anthony a co-captaincy last season as he adjusted after the February trade from Denver.
This time he allowed the players to vote on it, and Anthony and Stoudemire are co-captains. The club didn’t announce the move.
“Players selected them, so it’s good coming from the players,’’ Anthony said. “They obviously see something, and I have to lead them because we need it.’’
Though new center Tyson Chandler is their most vocal player and a quasi-defensive coach on the bench and court, he probably was deemed too new to be voted a captain after having just signed with the team.
Anthony — who sprained his right wrist and right ankle last night in the Knicks’ 94-83 loss to the Grizzlies in Memphis and is “day to day” — has been speaking like a leader since the season began. Following their win over Philadelphia Wednesday night, in which the Knicks held the Sixers to 79 points, Anthony said it’s his “personal vendetta’’ to erase the Knicks’ identity as a club that can’t play defense.
After the Knicks were swept in four games by the Celtics in the playoffs, Anthony heard all of the critiques on the Knicks’ defense all offseason and doesn’t want to hear it again.
* Rookie point guard Iman Shumpert was eating a plate of sliced tomatoes in the locker room before last night’s game. The Knicks are trying to solve the issue of him cramping late in games, and tomatoes is a good mineral/salt source.
D’Antoni has said the team medical staff was looking for ways to help him because he has had the problem since his playing days at Georgia Tech.
* Jared Jeffries, who hasn’t played since Christmas Day, said he’s on target to return from his calf injury tomorrow in Oklahoma City. Jeffries said he would have played last night but hadn’t gotten a practice under his belt.