SAN FRANCISCO — The Knicks were set to face the powerhouse Warriors on Thursday night without Carmelo Anthony and Derrick Rose.
Rose, as expected, is out with lower back stiffness. Anthony, after saying he expected to play after the team’s morning shootaround, is out with a sore right shoulder.
The Knicks made the announcement about Anthony’s injury about seven hours before game time.
Anthony and coach Jeff Hornacek have previously talked about possibly giving Anthony a game off to rest, but the topic of sitting him because of injury had not been discussed. It is not clear when the shoulder injury occurred.
As for Rose, he said he is hopeful of returning when the Knicks end their Western swing on Saturday in Denver.
“Just got to be smart about it,” said Rose, who missed two games because of the injury last week and then reinjured the back when he was fouled and fell on it in the first quarter on Tuesday in Phoenix. “It’s frustrating as hell, but just have to be smart about it. It’s improving, but it’s not where I want it to be, so I’m looking for hopefully playing in Denver.”
..... - Newsday