The number of unhappy Knicks keeps growing, oddly, during a period when the Knicks keep winning. The victim mentality of these players, who get tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars for every game whether they play or not, is an odd mix of frightening and hysterical. Below is a recap of the ever expanding list:
Nate Robinson: Benched from December 4 to January 1. Nate himself kept quiet, but his agent, who by definition acts on his behalf said:
“I have asked the Knicks to move Nate[.] At this point it’s personal. I don’t think Mike [D'Antoni] has [ever] done anything to show it’s basketball-related. I felt that way talking to Walsh during the Chicago game when they went 4-of-23 in the third quarter and the gentleman didn’t look for Nate to help out. They had a 39-point second half and for whatever reason he didn’t consider Nate.”
At the time of the trade demand, the Knicks were on a 4-2 stretch. They would win their next 3 games with Nate still on the bench.
Eddy Curry: Despite being physically capable of performing his contractual responsibilities for the first time in years, Curry was not able to contribute in a meaningful way. He was plodding and slowed the team down. The Knicks displayed an alarming lack of chemistry with Curry on the court. Mike D’Antoni benched him and Curry was not happy:
“I just leave it up to him, and when he decides he wants to play me, if he decides, I’ll play, and if not, then I’ll try to figure something out.”
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“During the game, when I’m sitting over there and time is just ticking away, a lot of stuff crosses my mind, but it’s too early for that.”
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“[If benched for the rest of the season] I would hope both sides would do what’s right. If [D'Antoni] decided to go that long, he probably would have made up in his mind, if he hasn’t already, that I’m not a fit for this team. I would hope we could work something out.”
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“It’s frustrating, because I worked so hard to get back and to be ready to go and now it’s just like go every game trying to figure out if I’m going to play or not, sitting over there waiting to see what’s going to happen[.] It’s tough to deal with, especially at this stage of my career, at this age. I ain’t that old, but I’ve been here for a while.”
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“I try not to think of the reasons because that’s so out of my control, it’s ridiculous.”
Where was this desperate-to-play Eddy Curry over the last 2 and a half years? Oh yea, eating twinkies. Eddy, just wants credit for doing something he’s supposed to do! Yea, he’s in shape. Good for him. He’s paid $11 million for it. Marcus Landry is in shape and he makes a fraction of what Curry makes. Whatchu want a cookie?
Larry Hughes: Larry Hughes made a big stink after the Knicks dismantled the Pacers by 43 points. Hughes took D’Antoni to task, saying:
In reality, Hughes had played in 5 games since coming back from his injury but averaged something like 2 points on 3 for 22 shooting. Hughes also blamed D’Antoni for failing to properly communicate with Hughes about the benching, but something tells me that it would have made little difference in Hughes’ perception if D’Antoni did.
Darko Milicic: Not happy to simply keep his mouth shut and collect his $91,463 checks on one last tour around the NBA, Darko wants to quit. But he also wants the money, Lebowski. He claims that he personally could give a damn about the money, but he needs every penny of his $7.5 million to, like Latrell Sprewell, feed his family:
Have to agree with you.