NEW YORK -- Following the New York Knicks' fifth straight loss at Madison Square Garden, a disgusted Carmelo Anthony said it looked as if the team wasn't even trying in a 110-90 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
"We ain't playing worth a s--- right now," Anthony said. "We got to play harder.
"I am disappointed too in all of our effort. We are just not getting it done. It ain't nothing that Coach [Mike] Woodson is doing [or not doing]. It ain't got nothing to do with X's and O's out there on the basketball court. We are not getting it done from an effort standpoint. It's like we are not even trying right now."
Even though Anthony says Woodson is not to blame, Knicks fans still briefly chanted "Fire Woodson" in the third quarter.
The home fans have not had much to cheer for so far this season. The Knicks (3-6) haven't won at the Garden since their 90-83 season-opening victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Oct. 30. They have lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Charlotte Bobcats, San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets and Atlanta at home.
During the loss to Minnesota, the Knicks surrendered 40 points in the first quarter. In a 120-89 loss to the Spurs last Sunday, they trailed 21-4 in the first quarter and fell behind by as many as 37.
Against the Hawks (6-4), the Knicks were within five (84-79) with 8:39 remaining before allowing a 14-2 run during which Atlanta scored on three layups and a dunk.
"You're not going to beat anybody playing soft and not hard like we did," Woodson said. "They played extremely extremely hard tonight and we just didn't compete with them."
Woodson said he may tinker with his lineup again. The Hawks shot 56.4 percent from the field against a Knicks defense minus the injured Tyson Chandler, who is out for at least a month with a fractured leg.
The players spoke afterward in the locker room.
J.R. Smith -- after a 3-for-18 night from the floor that saw him miss 8-of-9 3-point tries -- took some of the blame.
"Excuse my language but I was playing like s---," he said. "I played terrible. I've been playing terrible since I got back and I wasn't happy about it."
Anthony, who led the Knicks with 23 points and 12 rebounds, left the Garden baffled and angry.
"You just got to do more I guess," Anthony said. "Just try to go out there and get it done as a team. I am not going to do it by myself. I don't want to do it by myself. We got to do it as a team. We keep digging ourselves deeper and deeper.
"It's frustrating. Messed up feeling. Nasty feeling. I really am kind of at a loss for words right now."
Information from ESPNNewYork.com contributor Ian Begley was used in this report.