Carmelo Anthony knee issue seems minor

The Knicks are 22-25 this season and are getting 21.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game in the 42 games star forward Carmelo Anthony has played this season. Here’s the New York Post reporting on Melo’s knee situation:

Carmelo Anthony knee issue seems minor

Carmelo Anthony won’t play Thursday night in Toronto, but said he’s happy to be out of the woods.

Call off the alarm bells. Most of Anthony’s left knee soreness has gone away and he believes he will play Friday against the Suns at the Garden. He said he has no worries about any structural issues related to his surgically repaired torn patellar tendon.

If the Knicks weren’t playing on consecutive nights, Anthony probably would have given it a whirl against the Eastern Conference-power Raptors, who are looking for the franchise-record 10th straight win. Instead, Anthony will miss his second straight game and sixth of the season. The Knicks are 0-5 in the games he’s missed.

Wizards will be known as Baltimore Bullets for their January 28 game

For one night only, the Washington Wizards will be known as the Baltimore Bullets when they host the Denver Nuggets on Jan. 28 at 7:00 p.m. for Throwback Night presented by CSN.

The team will wear their Baltimore Pride uniforms for Throwback Night, which pay homage to the uniform worn by the Baltimore Bullets from 1969-73 while updating the color scheme to the Wizards’ current red, white and blue. They will also be referred to as the Baltimore Bullets for all in-game entertainment, television graphics and the team’s social media platforms throughout the night.

The following alumni are scheduled to be recognized during the game: Terry Dischinger, Earl Monroe, Bernard King, and Bob Dandridge.

A special throwback performance will take place at halftime featuring DJ Kool of “Let Me Clear My Throat” fame and recording artist Sugar Bear, who will perform his chart-topping hit “Da Butt.” In addition, game entertainment elements for that night will feature graphics reminiscent to the eras when many of the alumni in attendance played.

The concourse will feature various activities such as face painting, poster making, throwback music and a photo booth station.

Fans can also view the organization’s proud past with the team’s franchise history display, which is located on the concourse outside of section 112. The display, which was added earlier this season, features examples of all of the uniforms in franchise history as well as a narrative highlighting historical facts and photos.

The Wizards franchise called Charm City home beginning in 1963, playing as the Bullets at the Baltimore Civic Center and featuring future Hall of Famers Walt Bellamy and Gus Johnson. Fellow Hall of Famers Earl Monroe (1967-71), Wes Unseld (1968-73) and Elvin Hayes (1972-73) also were part of the Baltimore franchise before the team relocated to Landover, Md., prior to the 1973-74 season.

Tyronn Lue will coach East All Star team

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue and his staff will coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars in the 2016 NBA All-Star Game, to be televised by TNT at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, Feb. 14 from Air Canada Centre in Toronto.

The Cavaliers (32-12, .727) clinched the best record in the conference through games played on Sunday, Jan. 31, by virtue of their 115-93 win over the Phoenix Suns on Jan. 27.

Cavs hire Mike Longabardi as assistant coach

Mike Longabardi has joined Cavaliers Head Coach Tyronn Lue’s staff as an assistant coach, General Manager David Griffin and Head Coach Tyronn Lue announced tonight.

Longabardi spent the last two-plus seasons as an assistant coach with the Phoenix Suns. Prior to that, he spent six seasons as an assistant coach with the Boston Celtics under Doc Rivers, four of which with Coach Lue. While with the Celtics, he helped them reach three Eastern Conference Finals and two NBA Finals, including winning the 2008 NBA title. Before joining the Celtics, he was an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets under Jeff Van Gundy.

A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Longabardi played at Newberry College (S.C.) then transferred and graduated from Frostburg State University (Md.).

Rudy Gay remains out with eye injury

Rudy Gay remains out with eye injury

Sacramento Kings forward Rudy Gay was reexamined today at Kaiser Permanente and it was determined that he will miss tomorrow’s game at New Orleans as he continues to recover from a left eye corneal abrasion suffered in the waning stages of the second overtime against Charlotte on Monday.

Gay’s condition is improving daily and he will be listed as day to day going forward.

Fun video session for Warriors

Here’s the San Francisco Chronicle reporting on the Warriors, who just finished smacking around the Spurs and are feeling pretty good these days:

The Warriors had a unique video session before Tuesday’s practice.

There were neither highlights of Monday’s drubbing of the Spurs nor reminders about their next opponent, the Mavericks, who pulled off a 23-point upset of the Warriors on Dec. 30.

Instead, head coach Steve Kerr had a video spliced together that offered an ode to Australia Day and included a comedy bit from Conan O’Brien.

“I was pretty disappointed, because I thought we were going to watch film on Dallas,” power forward Draymond Green joked a day ahead of the Warriors’ rematch with the Mavericks. “Terrible coach. … No, this environment is always loose and fun.”

Clippers issue statement on Blake Griffin punching incident

The following is a joint statement from L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer and President of Basketball Operations and Head Coach Doc Rivers:

Clippers issue statement on Blake Griffin

L.A. Clippers forward Blake Griffin suffered a spiral fracture of the fourth metacarpal in his right hand throwing a punch on Jan. 23 in Toronto.

This conduct has no place in our organization and this incident does not represent who we are as a team. We are conducting a full investigation with assistance from the NBA. At the conclusion of the investigation, appropriate action will be taken.

Griffin received X-rays on Jan. 25th in Los Angeles that revealed the injury and he underwent a procedure on his hand Tuesday morning. The procedure was performed by Dr. Steve Shin. Recovery time from the injury is approximately four to six weeks.

Bradley Beal suffers broken nose, concussion

Bradley Beal suffers broken nose, concussion

Wizards guard Bradley Beal has been diagnosed with a broken nose and concussion by the Wizards medical staff after being hit in the face at the 8:22 mark of the second quarter during Monday night’s game vs. Boston. He is out for tonight’s game at Toronto and his status moving forward will be listed as day-to-day.

Per the NBA’s Concussion Policy, Beal will now begin the NBA-mandated “Return-to-Participation Exertion Protocol” and will be cleared to play once he has remained symptom-free during each step of the process.

Jazz sign Erick Green to 10-day contract

Jazz sign Erick Green to 10-day contract

The Utah Jazz today signed guard Erick Green from the Reno Bighorns to a 10-day contract. Green becomes the NBA’s 13th overall NBA D-League Call-Up of the 2015-16 season.

Following the move, Utah’s roster now stands at 15 players.

Green (6-3, 178, Virginia Tech) has appeared in 23 games (22 starts) for the Bighorns this season, averaging 26.7 points on 53.3 percent shooting, 4.4 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 39.0 minutes of action. He has scored in double figures in 22 games, including 20-plus points on 19 occasions. He scored 30-or-more points in nine contests and a career-high 40 points in two games.

The 24-year-old appeared in 46 games (one start) over two seasons for Denver (2014-2015) and averaged 3.2 points in 9.1 minutes. He was waived by the Nuggets on Nov. 5 after appearing briefly in three games this season. Green also spent one season (2013-14) with Sana 1871 Siena.

The Inglewood, Calif. native played four years at Virginia Tech (2009-13), averaging 25.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.3 steals during his senior season. He was named the 2013 ACC Co-Player of the Year and earned 2013 All-ACC First Team honors.

Green will wear No. 18 for the Jazz.