Carmelo Anthony played through an inflamed elbow — officially chronic bursitis — during the end of last season and through the playoffs. It showed as ‘Melo shot just 37.5 percent in the Knicks one playoff series, well off the 46.4 percent he shot for the Nuggets the previous playoff run.
That elbow kept him from working out or playing in too many games this summer.
Then he showed up to play for the Melo League in its showdown with the Goodman League in Baltimore. And he looked good, dropping in either 27 or 36 points, depending on whose scorekeeping you wish to listen to (the official scorekeeping at these pro-am games borders on nonexistent). Either way, he looked healthy and told that to the New York Post.“I’m back like I never missed a game,” the Knicks star said last night….
“This is my first time coming out and actually playing [this summer],” Anthony said. “I wanted to bring LeBron out here to actually enjoy the atmosphere . . . there’s nothing like it.”
If he’s back healthy, that is a big thing for the Knicks offense as they head into next season (whenever that is). He with Amar’e Stoudemire provides a wicked amount of firepower and create serious matchup issues.
The bigger question for the Knicks success, however, is how Mike Woodson gets ‘Melo and teammates to play defense.
