NEW ORLEANS - In a span of roughly 30 minutes Sunday evening, Carmelo Anthony's embrace of a glorious past was smacked with the reality of his depressing present.
Not that the Knicks could ruin his glee about Syracuse. But it took a minute.
"To go from my team being in the Final Four to go back to being eliminated from the playoffs, it kind of messed the emotions up for a minute," he said about New York's mathematical concession to missing the postseason for a third straight year, a formality made official when the Pacers toppled the Rockets on Sunday night.