Carmelo Anthony’s high value proven in Knicks loss to Heat

Two things became very apparent during the Knicks’ hard fought  99-89 loss to the Miami Heat on Friday night. First off, the Knicks moved the ball better and had significantly better flow in their offense due to the absence of Carmelo Anthony. However, the game also proved that the Knicks cannot win a close game without Carmelo Anthony. Seems contradictory, does it not? Well, the Knicks played solid basketball for three quarters; they led for a good portion of an absolute see-saw battle of a game, while moving the ball very well and getting open shots, as D’antoni teams are supposed to do. When they needed someone to step up late, though, there was nobody to turn to. Amar’e Stoudemire? He is far from a closer, and his struggles this year have been immense, playing the worst basketball of his career. Landry Fields, Toney Douglas, Iman Shumpert, and Bill Walker are all inconsistent and unreliable, as good of role players as they can be at times. It seemed as if the Knicks were about r...