Melo rips Knicks' lack of effort after blowout loss

It didn't take long after fans booed the New York Knicks' fifth straight loss at Madison Square Garden, that a disgusted Carmelo Anthony said it looked as if the team wasn't even trying during a lopsided 110-90 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

"We ain't playing worth a s--- right now," Anthony said. "We got to play harder. 

"I am disappointed too in all of our effort. We are just not getting it done. It ain't nothing that Coach [Mike] Woodson is doing [or not doing]. It ain't got nothing to do with X's and O's out there on the basketball court. We are not getting it done from an effort standpoint. It's like we are not even trying right now."

Even though Anthony says Woodson is not to blame, Knicks fans still briefly chanted "Fire Woodson" in the third quarter.

After the Knicks dropped to 3-and-6, Anthony did not want to discuss orange uniforms or the Knicks City Dancers in the locker room. The frustrated forward was clearly focused on the fact that the Knicks had allowed the Hawks to shoot 56.4 percent and score 48 points in the paint. He said the club isn’t "trying." Anthony even suggested the team may soon dig themselves too deep a hole to recover.

"I’m disappointed in all our effort," Anthony said. "We’re not getting it done from an effort standpoint. It’s like we’re not even trying right now.

"We can’t worry about the boos."

The last time the Knicks had lost five in a row at home was February 2010, when they broke down the team for cap space with hopes of landing LeBron James in the free agency sweepstakes.

That was then but Melo thinks the Knicks time is right now.

"I can’t believe it," said Anthony, soon to be a free agent this summer. "I don’t even know what to say. I’m in awe. I don’t know how to explain it. I don’t know If there is an explanation.

"It’s surprising. To come into the season with a mindset of being better than we were last year and to be where we’re at right now. I know it’s 3-6, but we got to turn this around quickly. It’s a nasty feeling within the team."

And he pinned it squarely on the defense.

"It ain’t got anything to do with making shots and missing shots," said Anthony, who finished with 23 points on 8-of-21 shooting with 12 rebounds. "We’re just not getting it done on the other end. We’re not defending, giving any effort."

Anthony sounded as if he’s hoping for a turnaround before it's too late.

"I know it’s early in the season, but at the rate this is going, we’re going to be in too deep a hole to dig out," he said.