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Jack.Kerr · 11-16-2007, 11:54 AM

Stephon Marbury still king of Knicks court

BY FRANK ISOLA
Friday, November 16th 2007, 4:00 AM

"She thinks she runs the Knicks. She don't run ---. This is my team."
- Stephon Marbury on former Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders

SACRAMENTO - And the truth shall set them free-falling.

Stephon Marbury was right on the money years ago when he allegedly told a Madison Square Garden employee exactly how the power structure works with the Knicks. James Dolan may be boss and Isiah Thomas team president/coach. But Marbury is king. And it's good to be the king.

After going AWOL for 24 hours, Marbury played 34 minutes in Wednesday night's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. Sure, he momentarily lost his starting job, but that decision by Thomas was window dressing. If the embattled coach really wanted to send a message to his controversial point guard, Thomas would have benched Marbury for most if not the entire game.

Instead, Thomas all but condoned Marbury's actions and by doing so he alienated some of his most loyal supporters inside the Knicks' divided locker room. Yahoo! Sports reported that Thomas asked Jamal Crawford to poll the players on whether Marbury should play, and that even though they voted unanimously to bench Marbury, Thomas overruled the decision, which furthered angered the players.

Afterward, the tension in the locker room was palpable. There hasn't been this much grumbling among Knick players since Don Nelson made Anthony Mason, and not Patrick Ewing, the focal point of the offense 12 years ago.(Note to Mavs' fans)

"My goal is to try to win a basketball game," Thomas said Wednesday night after the Knicks fell to 2-5. "I've played with people I don't like. I've won with people I don't like. We're a professional basketball team, and my job is to try and win the basketball game. However I feel about a person doesn't matter. We're trying to win. Whatever happened in the past is in the past and we move forward."

The team that takes the floor tonight against the Kings is in a state of chaos, and Thomas' job security has been weakened. And now his credibility with the players has been severely damaged.

Think about it: if Thomas' decisions are solely based on winning, how can he explain the move to bench Marbury in favor of Mardy Collins in the first place? On Monday, when Marbury found out about the impending switch during the charter flight to Phoenix, he became enraged and booked a plane ride back to New York the next morning.

Marbury may have lost a step defensively but he is still a better option than Collins. Crawford has been just as bad defensively while Eddy Curry is the Knicks' biggest disappointment through seven games.

But Marbury was singled out, adding validity to the report that Dolan, the Garden chairman, was behind the move. Dolan marched into Thomas' office following Sunday's loss to Miami and met with him for 20minutes. About 15 hours later, Thomas was at war with Marbury, who has never been one to back down from a public fight.

He then threw a wrench into Dolan's plan by going AWOL and turning the episode into yet another media-relations disaster for the Knicks, who now own the world record in that category.

Marbury even violated Dolan's sacred media policy when he sent a text message to two news outlets to explain his side. For a moment, Marbury was Latrell Sprewell without cornrows. And we all know what became of Sprewell, a star who was embraced by Knicks fans and who once played in a playoff game with a broken foot. But when Sprewell violated Dolan's absurd media policy, his days in New York were over.

Marbury is now being betrayed by his former bootlickers who live their lives in fear of Dolan turning on them.

But Marbury may have a surprise weapon. The Daily News reported that Marbury, upon learning that he was being benched, told teammates on Monday that if Thomas followed through with the move he would go public with dirt that he has on his coach.

Marbury said on Wednesday that it is not in his character to make such threats. But he may have something incriminating on his coach. Thomas blinked first. The players wanted Marbury to sit, only to see Thomas play him for 34 minutes while chalking it up as coaching to win.

But the Knicks still lost and Thomas is losing control. His job could be the next thing he loses. But then, maybe Thomas has got dirt on Dolan.

11-16-2007, 11:54 AM	#26
Jack.Kerr Golden Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 1,715	Who's zooming whom? Stephon Marbury still king of Knicks court BY FRANK ISOLA Friday, November 16th 2007, 4:00 AM "She thinks she runs the Knicks. She don't run ---. This is my team." - Stephon Marbury on former Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders SACRAMENTO - And the truth shall set them free-falling. Stephon Marbury was right on the money years ago when he allegedly told a Madison Square Garden employee exactly how the power structure works with the Knicks. James Dolan may be boss and Isiah Thomas team president/coach. But Marbury is king. And it's good to be the king. After going AWOL for 24 hours, Marbury played 34 minutes in Wednesday night's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. Sure, he momentarily lost his starting job, but that decision by Thomas was window dressing. If the embattled coach really wanted to send a message to his controversial point guard, Thomas would have benched Marbury for most if not the entire game. Instead, Thomas all but condoned Marbury's actions and by doing so he alienated some of his most loyal supporters inside the Knicks' divided locker room. Yahoo! Sports reported that Thomas asked Jamal Crawford to poll the players on whether Marbury should play, and that even though they voted unanimously to bench Marbury, Thomas overruled the decision, which furthered angered the players. Afterward, the tension in the locker room was palpable. There hasn't been this much grumbling among Knick players since Don Nelson made Anthony Mason, and not Patrick Ewing, the focal point of the offense 12 years ago.(Note to Mavs' fans) "My goal is to try to win a basketball game," Thomas said Wednesday night after the Knicks fell to 2-5. "I've played with people I don't like. I've won with people I don't like. We're a professional basketball team, and my job is to try and win the basketball game. However I feel about a person doesn't matter. We're trying to win. Whatever happened in the past is in the past and we move forward." The team that takes the floor tonight against the Kings is in a state of chaos, and Thomas' job security has been weakened. And now his credibility with the players has been severely damaged. Think about it: if Thomas' decisions are solely based on winning, how can he explain the move to bench Marbury in favor of Mardy Collins in the first place? On Monday, when Marbury found out about the impending switch during the charter flight to Phoenix, he became enraged and booked a plane ride back to New York the next morning. Marbury may have lost a step defensively but he is still a better option than Collins. Crawford has been just as bad defensively while Eddy Curry is the Knicks' biggest disappointment through seven games. But Marbury was singled out, adding validity to the report that Dolan, the Garden chairman, was behind the move. Dolan marched into Thomas' office following Sunday's loss to Miami and met with him for 20minutes. About 15 hours later, Thomas was at war with Marbury, who has never been one to back down from a public fight. He then threw a wrench into Dolan's plan by going AWOL and turning the episode into yet another media-relations disaster for the Knicks, who now own the world record in that category. Marbury even violated Dolan's sacred media policy when he sent a text message to two news outlets to explain his side. For a moment, Marbury was Latrell Sprewell without cornrows. And we all know what became of Sprewell, a star who was embraced by Knicks fans and who once played in a playoff game with a broken foot. But when Sprewell violated Dolan's absurd media policy, his days in New York were over. Marbury is now being betrayed by his former bootlickers who live their lives in fear of Dolan turning on them. But Marbury may have a surprise weapon. The Daily News reported that Marbury, upon learning that he was being benched, told teammates on Monday that if Thomas followed through with the move he would go public with dirt that he has on his coach. Marbury said on Wednesday that it is not in his character to make such threats. But he may have something incriminating on his coach. Thomas blinked first. The players wanted Marbury to sit, only to see Thomas play him for 34 minutes while chalking it up as coaching to win. But the Knicks still lost and Thomas is losing control. His job could be the next thing he loses. But then, maybe Thomas has got dirt on Dolan. Last edited by Jack.Kerr; 11-16-2007 at 11:59 AM.