Clippers’ Jared Dudley will have his hands full with Carmelo Anthony

Clippers small forward Jared Dudley will have his hands full trying to slow down New York Knicks All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony.

It will be about more than just Dudley having to deal with Anthony’s scoring when the Clippers host the Knicks at Staples Center on Wednesday night.

Not only is Anthony second in the NBA in scoring at 26.5 points per game, but he also leads the league in field-goal attempts, averaging 22.2 shots per game.

And Anthony is lethal from anywhere on the court.

That’s something Dudley is aware of.

“I’d rather him catch it off the three-point line than the little 17-, 18-footer,” Dudley said. “I’m someone who wants him to put the ball on the floor. I don’t want him to do just that jab-step jump shot. That’s how he gets in a rhythm.

“I try to keep him out of the middle. He loves to get contact to get fouled. I want to keep him off the free-throw line. So it’s position defense and relying on someone like DJ [DeAndre Jordan] to help me out when he gets all the way to the basket.”

When Dudley was finished, he was told that is a lot to do against Anthony.

“That is a lot,” Dudley said, smiling.

Anthony’s Knicks are struggling right now, having lost six in a row.

“You don’t want to give anyone confidence, especially in the NBA,” Dudley said about facing the Knicks and Anthony. “They have winning guys. They still have Carmelo. They still have J.R. [Smith] and you know on any given night those two can combine for 50 to 60 points. I think the thing for us sticking to our defensive concepts. We know Melo is going to shoot the ball 20 to 30 times. We just have to make it tough for him.”

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