As the New York Knicks season continues to spiral downward, several players may be looking to jump ship before the trade deadline. Of course James Dolan and company continue to stress that no moves will be made, that is not stopping a few players from looking at their options. After reports surface that Beno Udrih had requested a trade following the Brooklyn Nets loss, the guard is denying the claim.
Udrih was considered to be a big free agent signing in last year's offseason, but he has barely made an impact since getting on the court. The guard was supposed to provide depth but he has only made a few appearances this season, averaging just 19.2 minutes per game. The New York Post reported that Udrih was not happy being on the failing Knicks and was especially unhappy with the offensive plan created by Mike Woodson, but now he is downplaying the remarks and prefers to remain with the team.
"Yeah, that's my first option,'' Udrih said. "There's a lot of options out there for everybody. I'm a Knick. I want to be here. I think the team has more than enough talent to succeed. We just got to get it together and do our job. I'm a Knick. I've always been professional. I'm going to stay professional. Whatever happens outside the basketball court, it's not in my power. If something happens, it happens. But right now, I'm a Knick, wearing a Knick uniform, staying in shape.''
Udrih might not be totally on board with Knicks for the remaining of the season, but Woodson is confident that Anthony is at least content with finishing the year out with New York. After comments made by Anthony and Tyson Chandler questioning the direction of the team, Woodson is stressing that everyone is prepared to make a push for the playoffs despite the losses.
"He's still got a chance to make the playoffs this year," Woodson said, via ESPNNewYork.com. "I mean, it's not over with. ... So until we're clearly out of it, Melo should be just fine. Melo I think is on board. I know he's on board." "Melo has been a major bright spot for our ballclub this year. He hasn't missed any games really and he's been there every game trying to help us win games. I know he's there, he's going to be there until the bitter end -- if it's a bitter end."
The Knicks are fresh off their fifth-straight loss and are looking for any kind of spark they can find. Chandler and Anthony both spoke out challenging Woodson and their teammates to start stepping up, something the head coach loves.
"[Chandler] challenging me, I challenge players, Melo challenging effort, I think it's healthy," Woodson said. "I am not going to sit here and let the media tear up our team inside with what we are trying to do. My thing is I got to keep guys in place, keep guys playing hard and keep guys believing that we can still make the playoffs. That's the goal."
