Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Garnett got into a heated altercation during last night’s game between the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics. The Celtics squeaked out a 102-96 win over New York as Anthony went 6-26 from the field and only netted 20 points on the night.
Anthony and Garnett’s battle was quite a show, though. After pushing and shoving on the low blocks for a few possessions, the two exchanged heated words and were both given technical fouls. Anthony continued to pursue Garnett, who initiated all of the confrontation, and could be seen barking at him at almost every possession late in the game.
Garnett has a tendency to get into his opponent’s head and this isn’t the first time that it has worked. However, this instance was different. As Anthony’s intensity picked up, Garnett seemed to retreat. This is a side of Anthony that has never been shown on the court before, as he seemed more concentrated on going after Garnett than he was with the actual game.
Sources, including several Knicks players, have said that Garnett said some things that were “out of bounds,” and the rumor is that Garnett’s comments had to do with Anthony’s wife, LaLa Vazquez.
That is something that is unacceptable, on or off the basketball court. I have no problem with how Anthony handled himself, either. If someone disrespects your family, especially your wife, you do what you have to do to handle the situation.
Anthony had to be restrained by his teammates from going into the Celtics locker room after the game, and then was seen waiting outside the Celtics bus hours after the game. New York City police, security guards, and even Knicks coach Mike Woodson got involved, and Anthony and Garnett weren’t able to get to each other.
“It’s certain things that you just don’t say to men, another man,” Anthony said. “I felt that he crossed the line. Like I said, we’re both at an understanding right now, we handled it the way we handled it. Nobody needs to know what was said behind closed doors. So that situation is handled.”
The Knicks and Celtics square off again on January 24th. Hopefully Anthony will realize that the best way to teach Garnett to keep his mouth shut is for New York to blow out the Celtics (17-17), just like the Knicks(23-11) are in the Eastern Conference standings.
Follow Thomas Duffy on Twitter @TD_Knicks for articles, news, and all things NBA.
