The New York Knicks may have won Monday night's game against the Orlando Magic, but they lost star player Carmelo Anthony to a sprained left ankle.
According to ESPN, Anthony, who led the Knicks with 19 points before leaving the game with 7:26 minutes left in the third quarter, will be evaluated Tuesday. Anthony's injury occurred when he was battling for a rebound with the Magic's Nikola Vucevic.
Knicks player, J.R. Smith replaced Anthony in the lineup. Without Anthony, the Knicks were able to hang on long enough for a 103-98 victory. Anthony told reporters in the locker room that he would remain optimistic about the sprain.
"I am walking," Anthony said, according to the Associated Press. "I think I caught it before it rolled all the way, but it rolled pretty bad. So we will evaluate everything (Tuesday). The good thing is I am able to walk with a little bit of pain. We will figure it out tomorrow. The pain was just too much. I was actually trying to walk it off to see if I could come back into the game.
"There wasn't any reason for me to go out there and risk it anymore," he said.
The Knicks also lost Raymond Felton late in the fourth quarter. ESPN reported that the point guard suffered a groin injury. Felton has not played since Dec. 11 due to a sore left hamstring, he reportedly injured during the team's training camp.
"We can't catch a break, man," Felton said after the game, according to ABC News. "Just can't catch a break."
Felton will be evaluated on Tuesday. ABC News reported that Knicks coach Mike Woodson is reportedly remaining positive, despite the latest string of injuries
"After Melo went down, I don't know if we hung our heads or what, but they made a hell of a run," Woodson told reporters. "We just kept fighting and grinding and withstood the run and really made some defensive stops down the stretch to help us secure the game."
"Melo's a tough kid. He doesn't sit out very often and we just have to wait and see how he feels tomorrow, see how he is an we'll go from there," he said.
Knicks will play Oklahoma City in Madison Square Garden on Wednesday and Anthony told the press he will play.
"I don't want to miss that game," he said. "It's Christmas Day at the Garden. I'll be there. Hopefully I'll be there."
