Kristaps Porzingis hurting too much to face Carmelo Anthony’s Thunder
Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis looks on from the bench during a game against the Thunder at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Dec. 16, 2017. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Knicks fans hoping to see Kristaps Porzingis play against Carmelo Anthony at the Garden will have to wait ’til next year.
Porzingis missed Anthony’s return to New York on Saturday night because of a sore left knee. The Knicks’ marquee player was ruled out of the game about an hour before tip-off.
Porzingis injured the knee in Thursday night’s win over the Nets in Brooklyn. He tried to give it a go by testing it during the pregame shootaround on Saturday but was unable to overcome the pain.
“Sometimes as a player you’re sore,” coach Jeff Hornacek said. “Certain movements. Doctors will say, ‘Oh, that’s nothing.’ Other movements, maybe they say that could be something . . . The stuff he was doing out on the court, if he felt things moving certain directions, that’s probably what the doctors are asking him.”
The Knicks listed Porzingis as day-to-day. Michael Beasley started in his place and scored 30 points in the Knicks’ 111-96 victory.
Oklahoma City West’s best?
Knicks center Enes Kanter, who came to the Knicks from Oklahoma City in the Anthony trade, said he thinks the Thunder is the best team in the Western Conference.
Wait . . . what?
“Obviously, they’ve got a wonderful team,” Kanter said of Oklahoma City, which was without starting center Steven Adams (concussion) and dropped to 14-15. “The three best players in the league. They’ve had some tough games, but I think most important thing, they’ve stayed together. They’re having fun out there. I believe they’re still the best team in the West.”
Better than Golden State?
“I believe it,” Kanter said. “I think in the end, you guys will see it in the playoffs. They’re going to step up and still be there. They’re the best in the West.”
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
