Marbury, Thomas share blame for mess
When Stephon Marbury goes AWOL and leaves the New York Knicks after believing he's going to be benched for an inferior player, he's dead wrong.
If he wasn't granted permission to leave, he's dead wrong.
If he was even told by his coach in a heated argument that "he can leave," he is dead wrong.
If reports are correct and he threatened to unload a tell-all of team dirt, he's dead wrong. (Though it's also very funny.)
So, to summarize: There really isn't a circumstance where you can leave your team because of personal discontent. If you do, you lose the one thing that your teammates hold sacred – trust.
If your point is to prove that you deserve more playing time – or to prove you don't deserve to be demoted – you can do that only by playing hard and keeping your mouth shut.
If the reports are accurate, Stephon Marbury overreacted to something that has happened to not only him, but also the best players in this league. Even Michael Jordan came off the bench when he first returned to the Washington Wizards.
So where does this leave the Knicks? In a very precarious position.
Since returning to the team, Marbury has been a model citizen. He has said and done the right things. But Marbury also has forced the Knicks to make the next move. His improved behavior, along with the Knicks' everything-stays-in-house policy, has led some to side with Marbury or think there's a conspiracy against the point guard.
After all, why wouldn't you publicly reprimand your player? Just say you didn't give him permission and announce he's being fined, and the matter is over with.
Why would you take Marbury out the lineup after five games when it's apparent to most that Mardy Collins and Nate Robinson are nowhere close to his talent level? Why would you take him out the lineup when Zach Randolph has missed games because of family matters?
And why would you bench him in Phoenix, of all places? Isn't this where Marbury was exiled from? You had to know there would be extra sensitivity.
And no matter what you say, Marbury is the face of the franchise. When you demote him, it tells everyone that he is to blame for the teams' problems.
So now who's dead wrong?
