Carmelo Anthony on surgically-repaired knee: 'I'm starting to feel like myself again'
Carmelo Anthony hasn't looked like Carmelo Anthony this season, however you cut it.
Melo is hardly having a bad season. He's still scoring well, going off for the occasional points outburst. Meanwhile, he's actually playing better defense than he possibly ever has as a member of the Knicks. But he doesn't look quite like the Anthony who won a scoring title only a few years ago. Let's blame that on the knee.
Anthony's season ended early last year because of knee surgery. He eventually shut down after the All-Star break this past February. Even though he was ready to start the season, coming back from surgery is always a process. Now, after a strong game against the Bulls on Saturday, he says he's slowly making his way back, via ESPN's Ian Begley:
Anthony is shooting just under 42 percent from the field on the season, but he's started to look like the Melo of old over his previous four performances, during which he's averaged 25.0 points per game on exactly 50 percent shooting.
After scoring 27 points in 35 minutes on the 2nd night of a back-to-back on Saturday, Anthony expressed confidence in the strength of his knee.
"It's getting there," he said. "I can feel it getting there slowly but surely. Some things early in the season with the back to backs were affecting me a little bit more. But taking it one day at a time, and sticking with the process, doing what Ive got to do to continue to get back, I'm starting to feel like myself again."
