Knicks' Stephon Marbury Goes AWOL After Benching
Updated 11/14/07 (8:10 PM)
Stephon Marbury has reportedly flown to LA to rejoin his Knicks as they take on the Clippers at the Staples Center. It's unclear whether Starbury will play in the game, but additional "juice" has come out about the incident.
Apparently, Marbury was told of the benching while in-flight to Phoenix. Unhappy with the situation, he went to the front of the plane and had a 5 min conversation with Isiah Thomas. It sounds like Thomas was firm with his decision and that's where it starts getting interesting.
Stephon apparently made statements to his teammates that he wouldn't play if he wasn't a starter and made a veiled threat that "he's got dirt on Isiah, stuff that nobody knows". It's not clear if he made the same threat to Thomas directly, but I think it's safe to assume that Marbury has dirt on the sexual discrimination case against Thomas - or even more damning evidence of Isiah's indiscretions.
This situation is far from over and you can bet that someone's going to get hurt in the end - careerwise at least.
Updated 11/14/07 (6:30 PM)
Marbury has been fined $180k for missing the game against Phoenix last night. He is also supposed to miss their next game against the Clippers, so his little "jaunt" is a costly one. Here's more:
The New York Knicks fined Stephon Marbury more than $180,000 for skipping Tuesday night's game at Phoenix, the latest clash between the team's star point guard and coach Isiah Thomas.
According to the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, players are docked 1/110th of their salaries for a missed game. With Marbury scheduled to earn $20.1 million this season, that would be about $182,800.
Initial Post 11/13/07
Reports out of New York have Stephon Marbury leaving the Knicks because coach Isiah Thomas benched him for tonight's game against Phoenix. Marbury reportedly text messaged the New York Post and told them he had permission to leave from Thomas. Marbury also indicated he would not be in LA for the next New York game.
This is another example of how self-inflated some NBA players are; they're too proud to come off the bench when they've been starters since junior high. Marbury has been making both good (cheap shoes) and bad (defending Isiah during trial) headlines lately; it's too bad he's so ignorant. Marbury has already indicated he wants to play in Italy after his 2-yr contract is over, so you have to wonder if the end of his Knicks career is near...
The Knicks are already without Zach Randolph (personal reasons) and Quentin Richardson (injury), so Fred Jones will be starting. The depleted roster is not helping the Knicks in their efforts to beat the Phoenix Suns. The Suns are leading 58-43 with about 2 minutes left in the first half.
