John Minchillo/Associated Press
The status of Carmelo Anthony, second from right, who has a sprained left ankle, was considered a game-time decision.
The Knicks' problems may have begun when Carmelo Anthony arrived for pregame warm-ups Wednesday wearing a brown blazer and grabbed a seat on the bench.
But based on two months of evidence, the team was in big trouble even before it disclosed that Anthony would miss the game, against the Oklahoma City Thunder, with a sprained left ankle.
With Anthony's activity limited to a series of facial expressions that ranged from morose to anguished, the Thunder rode Kevin Durant's brilliance to a 123-94 victory at Madison Square Garden, where the Christmas Day crowd — and a national television audience — was treated to ugly uniforms, flimsy defense and another loss.
"There's a lot of holes," Knicks center Tyson Chandler said. "If I started going over them all, I wouldn't make it home. I want my kids to open their gifts. So I'll just stick with: We've got a lot of holes."
Durant finished with 29 points for the Thunder (23-5), who shot 53.6 percent from the field and maintained a plush lead throughout the second half. That Russell Westbrook, who finished with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists, had a triple-double by the end of the third quarter was almost an afterthought.
The Knicks, on the other hand, hoisted a handful of jumpers that glanced off the side of the backboard. In the absence of Anthony and Raymond Felton, who did not play because of an injured groin muscle, J. R. Smith tried to fill the void by launching 22 shots. He missed 14 of them.
Coach Mike Woodson started his postgame news conference by saying, "Again." It has become a verbal tic for him this season, albeit for good reason. Again, the Knicks (9-19) could not sustain any sort of effort. Again, the Knicks failed to move the ball. Again, the Knicks were eviscerated at home.
"I don't think we even established anything from a defensive standpoint," Woodson said.
Early in the third quarter, with the game in danger of ballooning into a blowout, Smith missed a layup, and Durant promptly knocked down a 3-pointer. The Thunder's lead swelled to 25 early in the fourth with Durant and Westbrook on the bench. Neither returned to the game. It was a luxury against an inferior opponent.
The Knicks' loss was the worst by a home team on Christmas Day, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, and late in the game, the Garden crowd booed the players (namely Smith) and chanted for team officials (namely Woodson) to be fired.
"Yeah, I hear them," Smith said. "They're just fans. When we lose, they're going to boo. When we win, they're going to cheer. That's just how the game goes."
Anthony and Felton sustained their injuries in the second half of Monday's win over Orlando, and while Anthony's status against the Thunder was considered a game-time decision — he told the team's medical staff that he "couldn't go," Woodson said — Felton could be out much longer. Groin injuries tend to be problematic, and Felton has already dealt with hamstring and hip injuries this season, his 29-year-old body rusting like a muffler.
Anthony and Felton were not made available to the news media. Woodson declined to offer a timetable for either player's return.
The two were at least spared the indignity of having to wear the Knicks' short-sleeved jerseys in the latest N.B.A. marketing move. The team also remained winless in seven games this season while wearing the color orange, although Durant and Westbrook had far more to do with the loss than the Knicks' wardrobe. For long stretches, the arena sounded like a morgue. "It felt like no one was in here," Durant said.
Woodson turned to Beno Udrih to start at point guard and had Toure Murry, one season removed from the N.B.A.'s Development League, back him up. It was only a coincidence that Stephon Marbury was sitting four rows behind the Knicks' bench. Marbury, now playing in China, spent parts of five seasons with the Knicks, most recently in 2007-8, before the team bought out his contract as he feuded with Mike D'Antoni, the coach at the time.
On Wednesday, Marbury sat with family members and chatted with security guards. Perhaps the Knicks could have used him.
Amar'e Stoudemire finished with 22 points. It was the first time this season that someone other than Anthony had led the team in scoring. Chris Smith, whose signing before the season drew some accusations of nepotism because he is J. R. Smith's brother, made his N.B.A. debut with 1 minute 21 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The Knicks were trailing by 26.
With Anthony sidelined, it was assumed that J. R. Smith would feel even more liberated to shoot with gluttonous frequency. Then again, Woodson has seldom needed to encourage that type of behavior from Smith, and he sank an early 3-pointer as the Knicks sought to match the Thunder's pace.
They were not successful. The Thunder shot 70 percent in the first quarter. After the Knicks put three men on Durant in the post on one possession, Durant got the message and drifted to the perimeter, where he hit jumper after jumper. Smith drew the defensive assignment, and Durant simply extended his arms and shot over him. And when Durant was double-teamed (or triple-teamed), he often found Serge Ibaka, who finished with 24 points.
"Our rotations aren't there," Chandler said. "And that's all right when you're giving it your all. But the worst thing you can do is compound that by hanging your head and not believing in yourself."
The Thunder had no such problems, playing with energy and confidence, the outcome never in doubt. Westbrook even picked up a mop to clean the court during a late timeout. The Knicks, though, were the real mess.
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