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Melo focusing on assisting Knicks, not hung up on scoring

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Carmelo Anthony was told he’s only 156 points behind Larry Bird on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, an accomplishment he had a little fun with while standing in the team’s practice facility Monday.

“I’m going to get there tomorrow,” he said.

Anthony was joking, of course, because that’s ridiculous. But also because the 31-year-old isn’t as hung up on scoring this season.

Citing a development and commitment to trust, Anthony is averaging fewer shots and more assists than in any other season during his Knick tenure, with Sunday afternoon’s victory over Atlanta as a strong example: four teammates took more or the same amount of shots as Anthony, including Arron Afflalo, who went off for 38 points while the star was content in the background.

FISHER CALLS OUT KNICKS’ EFFORT AS SKED BEGINS TO STIFFEN UP

Part of this is about the misery of 2014-15, and what it really feels like to lose … and lose some more. Anthony realized he needed help.

“I think it’s just a natural progression of a person who is maturing,” Afflalo said. “He really wants to win.”

These Knicks (16-19) already can match last season’s win total with a victory Tuesday in Atlanta, a circumstance that Derek Fisher has embraced and discussed with his team. He wants the players to pat themselves on the back, just not too hard.

“We have to appreciate and celebrate the progress we are making. You can never ignore that you’re getting some positive feedback. But as long as we don’t settle or believe that we somehow accomplished something then we’ll be fine,” the coach said.

Carmelo Anthony is averaging fewer field goal attemps and more assists.Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images

Carmelo Anthony is averaging fewer field goal attemps and more assists.

The Knicks, sitting 12th in the Eastern Conference, are still a long way from contention and even a playoff spot this season, with an arduous road trip upcoming to Atlanta, Miami and San Antonio. But there is a different vibe, a sense of progress even with a persistent issue of inconsistency.

Anthony said the Knicks haven’t been bogged down by the losing like last season, and Sunday was an example of them responding positively following an

embarrassing defeat two days prior in Chicago.

“The vibe is totally different. It’s night and day — just guys’ mentality, guys’ spirit, the positive vibe, the positive energy that’s around here,” Anthony said. “You know, whether you win, whether you lose. When we lose, we try to figure out a way to win and nobody gets down. You need that as a group. It’s a long season and you’re going to have ups and downs. If guys start straying away, you’re going to have a breakdown.”

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Anthony acknowledged his mindset was different when he was younger, when he was hoisting up to 22.4 shots per game with the Nuggets. Not that he felt the need to get his points for selfish reasons back then, but rather there was a lack of trust in his teammates. What started off this season as speculation into whether Anthony would be willing to partake in a rebuilding process or demand a trade has veered in a surprising direction of him becoming more of a team-oriented player, at least offensively.

“To be honest with you, when I was younger I probably wouldn’t have been at ease (with only taking 10 shots) because I was the guy that always had to go out there and score 30, score 40 points to even try to be in a close game and try to have a chance to win the basketball game,” Anthony said. “Now, with the makeup of this team, I don’t really have to do that. I feel a lot more comfortable now with only taking 10 shots on certain nights and letting somebody else have a breakout game and let other guys get involved and get their confidence up. I feel more comfortable with that now.

“It’s not that (I had to get my points), but I felt like I had to be a part of what’s going on out there. You see everybody else is doing it and you want to get out there and do it. You can look bad doing it sometimes, when you try to force the issue. But a game like (Sunday), and a couple games already throughout the season, I just kind of take it as it comes.”

Tags:
carmelo anthony ,
new york knicks ,
nba

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