Mike Woodson ready to 'punch' panic out of J.R. Smith

If you thought all of the talk of "panicking" from J.R. Smith has affected Mike Woodson's sense of humor — think again.

The Knicks head coach certainly didn’t enjoy some of Smith’s public negativity after recent Knicks losses to Indiana and Washington, but is taking it in stride.

After the heartbreaking loss against the Pacers Wednesday, Smith said: "Like you say, it’s too early to panic, but me, personally, I’m panicking. I don’t like this."

In Washington, Smith said he felt every possession is starting to feel packed with “pressure’’ and the team isn’t having fun and “overanalyzing.’’

When asked if he was irritated by Smith’s panic remark, Woodson said: “To be sitting here after 12 games talking about I’m in a panic stage, I might need to punch him out and get it out of his thought process.”

Woodson then smirked, but it wasn’t meant entirely as a big joke.

"I don't like players feeling that way," Woodson said before Monday night's loss to Portland when Smith scored only six points. "It's a long season. I've been around long enough to see where things can turn awfully fast."

Remember ... Woodson did have a smirk on his face. Let's see how long it lasts.