New York Knicks starting small forward Carmelo Anthony could be missing Thursday night's showdown matchup with the Miami Heat due to a finger injury he suffered in Wednesday's game against the Charlotte Bobcats.
Anthony suffered a deep cut injury to the finger on his non-shooting hand after diving head-first for a loose ball that was headed towards the Knicks bench. The valiant effort resulted in Anthony cutting his hand on a metal container behind the bench that used to keep heating packs warm.
After the play Anthony immediately had to get his finger heavily bandaged and now remains a game time decision against the Heat.
"Right now it's numb so I don't know," Anthony said after the Knicks, owners of the best record in the East, improved to 13-4. "I'm not getting on Southwest. I'm going to Miami.
"At the end of the day my teammates see me at least attempt and try, and hopefully that says something," said Anthony, who scored 23 points but went 1-for-11 in the second half. "I wasn't expecting to get hurt, but for those guys to see me save a loose ball, that goes a long way.
"I heard that the shot clock was down. I didn't even know. I just saw J.R. make the spectacular block so I'm like, 'Let me try to save the basketball.' If I knew the shot (clock) was running out there is no way I would have dove into the stands."
Anthony is averaging 26.4 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He's a key piece to the Knicks offense and he knows the importance of the game against the reigning NBA champions.
"I want to play against Miami," said Anthony, who isn't sure if he can catch or control the ball with his finger bandaged. "But at the end of the day I have to do what's right for my finger. It's a deep cut. If I can't play then I'll see them two more times."
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