<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Greg Anthony played for Pat Riley's Knicks teams of the 1990s - clubs known for their combativeness and their winning. Anthony, the ESPN commentator who's been a harsh critic of Isiah Thomas, said the Knicks showed no toughness by inciting a brawl with 1:15 left while being blown out of the Garden by the Nuggets. Anthony himself was involved in fisticuffs during a playoff series vs. the Bulls. "The league was far more physical than it is today," Anthony told The Post. "That led to more confrontational situations. Those confrontational situations were out of competitiveness, with teams that had a legit chance to win championships, and we were fighting for that. It's all relative. We were playing for the highest stakes - a lot more than the stakes the Knicks are playing for." Anthony thought the whole episode was poor sportsmanship. Anthony said he's never had an opposing coach yell at him or one of his teammates, making a threat the way Isiah Thomas has done to Bruce Bowen and Carmelo Anthony, who was told to "stay out of the paint." "I never had a coach say that to an opponent," Anthony said. "I've had a coach say, do a better job protecting our territory. That's a little different. But a lot of things are different with the New York Knicks." Anthony and Thomas warred earlier this season over Anthony's critical remarks about drafting Renaldo Balkman over Marcus Williams. "They're already in a difficult situation. You can't sugarcoat it," Anthony said. "I don't know what the bright side could be, unless this type of adversity can unify the unit, use it as motivation to eventually say they're credible."</div> Source
