Starbury May Play
Despite the fact that his father will be buried tomorrow morning, Stephon Marbury could take the court for the struggling Knicks tonight.
Even though Stephon Marbury missed shootaround this morning, he has yet to be ruled out of tonight’s game in New Jersey against the Nets.
Marbury’s father passed away three days ago during the Knicks’ home loss, and he’ll be buried tomorrow morning, but Coach Isiah Thomas won’t rule out his starting point guard taking the court tonight. Originally, Marbury was expected to miss at least one week of action.
The Knicks, 0-7 on the road and just 5-11 overall, could sure use the help as they try desperately to work their way back into the playoff picture and attempt to make a move on the Nets, the team they are chasing for third place in the Atlantic Division.
To make matters worse, Eddy Curry sprained his ankle this morning and is questionable for the game.
If Starbury doesn’t play, look for Mardy Collins, who is now healthy, or Nate Robinson (who hasn’t played at all in the past two games) to start. Jamal Crawford or perhaps even Fred Jones would be forced to see some time at the point in the eventuality that Marbury is not ready to get back on the court.
Although he only managed four assists and two boards, Marbury had his offense going on Sunday, nailing two treys and scoring 21 points on 7-for-13 shooting. That’s been some rare footage this season as, even though he’s been healthy for the most part, Starbury has generally struggled in the early portion of the campaign. He’s been in foul trouble plenty of times, and that’s been hurting his effectiveness.
The timing of Curry’s injury is also crap, as he finally enjoyed a solid game Sunday (10-for-13 shooting for 21 points with eight rebounds) after struggling recently. Curry ” never a top rebounder despite his size ” has slipped this year after last season managing a career-best 7.0 RPG. He managed 18 double-doubles last year, but has done it just once this season.
