Most New York Knicks fans want to see the team tank the season to land a top pick in the NBA draft. But to star forward Carmelo Anthony, that is a “bad mentality to have.”
via ESPN:
“I don’t know how to have that mindset,” Anthony said Wednesday night after the Knicks beat the Philadelphia 76ers 98-91 to improve to 7-36. “Having that mindset as a basketball player, as a competitor, it’s just hard to do unless you don’t care about the game, what happens and your performance. To say that we’re going to go out there and we want to lose a basketball game, I think that’s a bad mentality to have.”
The Knicks have won two straight for the first time since Nov. 2 but still have the NBA’s worst record.
The team that ends the season with the worst record has a 25 percent chance of landing the top pick in the draft. It is guaranteed to pick no lower than fourth. The team that finishes with the second-fewest wins has a 19.9 percent chance of landing the top pick; the third-worst team has a 14.7 percent chance.
Anthony is still dealing with a knee injury that will likely require surgery. He’s expected to pull the plug on the season after All-Star weekend.
