Celtics Title Town

ESPN New York

With uncertainty surrounding the condition of Carmelo Anthony's right knee, New York Knicks coach Mike Woodson admitted that he's "worried" about his star forward.

Anthony was in New York on Thursday to get fluid from his knee drained. The Knicks say Anthony had a "soft tissue fluid collection" removed from the back of his knee and is questionable for Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Anthony will miss the Knicks' game Thursday against Portland and has been sidelined for four of the Knicks' past six games because of the knee ailment.

"When a key guy goes down that's a big piece, a major piece to your puzzle, sure you've got to worry," Woodson said Thursday on ESPN New York 98.7 FM. "There's no doubt I'm worried. There's no doubt that I'm worried about Carmelo. But I'm worried about our team as a whole with how we're playing. Coming out of that Utah game at home these past two games have been a nightmare for all of us."

It's time for the Celtics to sneak, and capture the crown for a 6th year in a row. Three and  a half games back.

ESPN LA

Atlanta Hawks swingman Dahntay Jones outspokenly defended himself against criticism from Kobe Bryant, claiming that he did not intentionally attempt to injure the Los Angeles Lakers superstar in the final seconds of Wednesday night's game.

Bryant suffered a severely sprained left ankle when he landed awkwardly after taking a potential game-tying jump shot with 3.9 seconds remaining. He appeared to land on the foot of Jones, who was defending him closely on the play, and rolled the ankle before crumpling to the floor in pain.

Kobe Bryant tweeted this photo of his ankle, claiming it is "still very swollen."Following the Lakers' 96-92 loss, Bryant said referees need to do a better job protecting shooters from defenders who go underneath them while shooting.

"As defensive players, you can contest shots, but you can't walk underneath players," Bryant said. "That's dangerous for the shooter."

The Lakers are in trouble. Can they hold off Utah, Dallas, and Portland?