Sore Loser: Carmelo Anthony flops in Knicks' Loss to Nuggets

(AP) Anthony flops in Knicks’ 117-94 loss to Nuggets
By ARNIE STAPLETON
AP Sports Writer
DENVER
His return to Denver having gone so awry, Carmelo Anthony is returning to New York to get his ailing right knee drained.

It was Anthony’s first game at the Pepsi Center since he demanded a trade to New York more than two years ago, leading to a blockbuster deal that reshaped both franchises.

With the crowd jeering him and his knee barking at him, Anthony had one of his worst games ever at the Pepsi Center, his home for the first eight seasons of his NBA career.

So, the Knicks went on to Portland after the game without Anthony, who’s heading across the country in the opposite direction.

Anthony might have pushed himself more than he should have in order to play in Denver.

Looking back, maybe the Knicks shouldn’t have let him play. He returned Monday night at Golden State after missing three games with knee pain.

Wilson Chandler scored 24 points and the Nuggets led by as many as 34 points on the way to winning their 10th straight game and 14th straight at home.

This one was such a laugher that their starters didn’t play the fourth quarter.

Neither did Anthony, who was 3-of-12 shooting when he left a couple of minutes into the second half.

The crowd that mostly jeered him chanted derisively, “Where is Melo?” throughout the fourth quarter.

Not on the court and not even on the bench.

By game’s end, the chant had morphed into, “Who needs Melo?”

The Nuggets raced out to a 64-42 halftime lead with Anthony in New York’s lineup and they stretched it to 97-69 after three quarters with him in the visiting locker room.

Iman Shumpert led New York with 20 points, but the Knicks were manhandled on the boards 53-33 and outscored 62-24 in the paint.

The Nuggets used a 21-1 run to drain the drama from this game midway through the second quarter when New York went almost 7 1/2 minutes between buckets, falling behind 54-31.

The Knicks trailed 58-28 when they lost Tyson Chandler for the night with a bruised left knee after he slammed into Corey Brewer under the basket and had to be helped to the locker room.

Anthony received a mixed but decidedly strong reception during pregame introductions–when the public address announcer accidentally presented him as No. 15, his number during his eight seasons in Denver, and not his current No. 7.

Masai Ujiri, the Nuggets executive vice president who famously said on the night of the trade, “We got killed,” called the deal a win-win Wednesday and said there were no residual hard feelings.

Asked if they were better without him than they were with him, Ujiri demurred.

The numbers say they are–albeit barely.

Denver is 100-57 since the blockbuster trade.

In the 157 games before the deal, they were 99-58.

Anthony wasn’t the only former Nugget returning to the Pepsi Center. He brought J.R. Smith, Kenyon Martin, Raymond Felton and Marcus Camby with him.

During the first timeout, there was a video tribute to them accompanied by John Sebastian’s iconic “Welcome Back” song.

That turned out to be the highlight of the night for the former Nuggets.

Anthony waxed nostalgic about his return after practice Tuesday night, but he hardly recognized the team he left–and not just because they were decked out in their new canary yellow uniforms. Lawson is the only Nuggets player who was teammates with Anthony 25 months ago, but 10 other Nuggets can trace their arrival to Anthony’s departure from Denver.

Although there was plenty of animosity when the deal went down Feb. 22, 2011, time has smoothed things over. The Nuggets landed a bevy of young players, trade exemptions and draft picks they’ve used to retool their roster, and the Knicks got a bona fide superstar to build a team around.

The resurgent Knicks (38-24) are still leading the Atlantic Division. The Nuggets (44-22) are in the hunt for home-court advantage in the playoffs.

Karl said he was glad this game had finally come and gone.

Notes: Gallinari hit his 500th career 3-pointer. … The Nuggets have won 32 of their last 42 games. … Woodson said Chandler is probable for Thursday night’s game.

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AP Sports Writer Pat Graham contributed.

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Follow Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton