With the obvious pain felt by Carmelo Anthony on his knee, New York Knicks president Phil Jackson has already expressed concern for his condition, adding that he might need surgery for it.

NBC Sports said that the Knicks organization has also encouraged Anthony to stop playing first then get necessary surgery for his injury.

Some reports noted that the Knicks star player is not yet ready to leave the game as he still wants to appear during the All-Star Game on Feb. 15, in New York City.

Jackson also confirmed that Anthony is not thinking about the possibility of surgery since he is very much focused on making it to the All-Star Game.

"I think for Melo the last resort is surgery, as it should be for anybody. Surgery is basically to repair and to correct. He's got a situation that could exacerbate, could get difficult, could be better with the surgery, but he wants to really try it again and see where he's going to be at," he was quoted by NBC Sports as saying.

The Knicks president also said that they will assess and sit down to talk to him about the assessment of his condition. "I know the All-Star game (at Madison Square Garden) is important for him down the road in February. I know this trip to London (for the Knicks game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Jan .15) will be important for him to play. He sees possibilities of helping the team get back and be better," he added.

In a Fanatix report, Jackson also took the blame for the team's struggle this season saying that his effort to recover has not been aided by Anthony who has been playing with an injured knee.

Despite this statement from Jackson, head coach Derek Fisher said that they cannot force Anthony to a medical operation which he is not yet willing to do.

"From the conversations I've been a part of, I think everybody is smart enough to realize, calendar-wise, timing-wise, that there may come a point that's the decision that needs to be made, but that we can't force Carmelo to that point just yet," Fisher was quoted by ESPN Go as saying. 

"Our medical staff, our training staff, continue to have conversations with him about where he is. He's conversing with us about how he's feeling, what the symptoms are. And so as each day kind of unfolds, decisions are being made. It's not something that we're just kind of stepping back and saying, 'Carmelo, you kind of tell us when you don't feel like playing anymore,'" Fisher added.