Anthony sat out Friday night’s loss to the Pistons…
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Carmelo advised to take time off: Anthony could be forced to sit out with knee problem.
New York Knicks coach Derek Fisher has conceded that Carmelo Anthony may opt to sit out the remainder of the season as he continues to battle a knee injury.
Anthony has played with soreness in his left knee since the second game of the season and most recently he sat out Friday night’s loss to the Detroit Pistons as the injury persists.
As a result, Fisher has conceded that they may eventually come to a decision which would see Anthony sit out the rest of the season, particularly given that the Knicks are unlikely to be playing for anything.
“From the conversations I’ve been a part of, I think everybody is smart enough to realize, calendar wise, timing wise, that there may come a point that that’s the decision that needs to be made,” Fisher said Friday.
“But [we realize] that we can’t force Carmelo to that point just yet.”
Fisher reiterated that any decision to shut Anthony down for the year would be made with input from both the player himself and the Knicks organisation.
“We can’t unilaterally just say, ‘Hey, you know, you can’t play for the rest of the season because of A, B and C,'” Fisher said.
“I think our medical staff, our training staff, continue to have conversations with him about where he is. He’s conversing with us about how he’s feeling, what the symptoms are. And so as each day kind of unfolds, decisions are being made. It’s not something that we’re just kind of stepping back and saying, ‘Carmelo, you kind of tell us when you don’t feel like playing anymore.'”
Anthony is in the first year of his new five-year contract which is worth $124m, and he has previously insisted that he will continue to play through the pain barrier until it becomes intolerable.
However, with the Knicks at 5-30 for the season, there will inevitably come a time where there is little point in risking his long term health in a losing effort.
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