Carmelo Anthony Says New York Knicks Are ‘Playing to Lose’

Staring at an ugly 3-13 record, including nine straight defeats (and some infighting), a dejected Carmelo Anthony told the assembled media last night that the New York Knicks are “playing to lose.” We don’t know what that means, but it doesn’t sound good. Per ESPN: “The Knicks have lost nine in a row for the first time since 2006. They have dropped seven in a row at Madison Square Garden, the longest home losing streak in franchise history. ‘I think we’re playing to lose rather than playing to win right now,’ Anthony said after the Knicks’ 103-99 loss to New Orleans on Sunday. ‘When you lose games the way we’ve been losing them at home, on the road, you start thinking a lot. You start playing a little tense. You start playing on your heels.’ Sunday night’s loss left the Knicks at 3-13. They are tied with the Milwaukee Bucks for the worst record in the Eastern Conference. ‘We just can’t seem to get it together,’ Anthony said after scoring 23 points and getting 10 rebounds. ‘We can’t seem to figure it out.’ […] Anthony said recently that he worried about the team going into a ‘dark place.’ He doesn’t think the Knicks are there yet. ‘Any time you’re fighting an uphill battle, you feel like you’re in a dark place,’ he said. ‘But we can’t go to that place. I’ve never been to that place. I don’t plan on getting to that place.’ All the uncertainty has marred the start to a season before which team owner James Dolan told staffers he expects to end with a Knicks championship. There are no indications that (head coach Mike Woodson’s job) is in jeopardy, although that could change at any moment. The Knicks have dangled Iman Shumpert in trade talks with several teams. Firings and trades aside, Anthony believes the Knicks’ biggest issue is a lack of identity. ‘Last year around this time, we had our identity as who we were as a team,’ he said. ‘This year we’re still searching for who we are as a team and who we’re going to be as a team.'”