As we bring in the New Year, the Knicks are looking to make 2015, a slightly more successful one than 2014, which can’t be hard. But we start with the gossip column favourite, but you might not hear from him for a couple of weeks.
LEBRON OUT FOR TWO WEEKS
Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James will be out for at least two weeks after scans revealed that he has knee and back strains.
The Cavs are currently 18-14. LeBron has missed three games this season and the Cavs have lost all three games.
Via ESPN:
“First and foremost, we want to make sure LeBron is well and completely recovered,” Cavs coach David Blatt told the Northeast Ohio Media Group on Thursday. “The season is long and our main objective is that he will be well and strong for the rest of the season. But we have to fight it out and work every day to build others until he gets back after the time he needs.”
James, who has missed Cleveland’s past two games, will undergo several forms of treatment, including anti-inflammatories, the team said. The four-time MVP has never missed more than five straight games in his professional career; if the two-week timetable holds up, his absence could reach 10 games or more.
The Cavs play in Charlotte on Friday, host Dallas on Sunday, visit Philadelphia on Monday, are back home to meet Houston on Wednesday — then head out for a five-game road trip against Western Conference clubs. Cleveland is 0-3 this season when James does not play.
James aggravated his nagging knee injury on Christmas Day in Miami while jumping over a row of courtside seats. He acknowledged that the knee has been “hurting pretty much all year” on Wednesday, one day after his 30th birthday.
“I’ve been playing with it, and it goes away and comes back,” he said. “So, the one in Miami kind of reaggravated it when I came out of the game in the third quarter.”
MELO: IF IT WASN’T FOR FISHER, WE’D BE CRUMBLING
They own a woeful 5-29 record but for Carmelo Anthony, none of this is rookie head coach Derrick Fisher’s fault.
Via ESPN (After Knicks’ 99-78 loss to the Clippers):
“I think if it was anybody else in his position, I think this probably would’ve crumbled already,” Anthony said after scoring 19 points in 29 minutes. “I think he’s doing a great job of keeping everybody focused on the task at hand and believing in what we’re trying to do.”
This season, Anthony said, has “definitely [been] a test for me.” The Knicks already have had losing streaks of 10, nine and six games this season. Some of that can be blamed on injuries — they’ve been without key players like Anthony, J.R. Smith, Amare Stoudemire, Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon, and Iman Shumpert — for large stretches of the season. Some of it has been difficulty adjusting to the culture change Fisher and new Knicks president Phil Jackson have tried to instill in New York. Some is a lack of depth and talent on the roster as a whole.
Whatever the case, the losing has been awful for everyone involved to endure.
“I don’t really like doing the New Year’s resolution, but I just want 2015 to be better than 2014,” Anthony said. “We’ve got to find a win. We can’t be thinking about the turnaround. We’ve got to find a win first and see what happens from there.”
Anthony has been dealing with a sore left knee for most of the season. He has openly speculated he might eventually have to shut it down for an extended period if the pain grows worse. Earlier this week, he admitted he might not even make it to the All-Star Game, which is in New York this year.
“It’s tough. Some days you’re able to do some things, some days you’re not,” Anthony said. “Some days it’s tough to even run around and cut and jump. And then other days I come in and I don’t really feel it.
“I’m playing because I love to play and I want to play. I know what I can tolerate and what I can’t tolerate. The games I feel like I can’t tolerate it, I’m not going to play.”
