The Knicks Fix

Isiah Thomas' point of view: if the Knicks win tonight, they can call it three wins out of the past four.

Now that's optimism.

Small crowd here at the Garden for this one...a result of a holiday Friday night in New York, maybe some traffic and . . . maybe the state of the team. Still, Isiah heard the boos loud and clear when he was introduced.

The team overall was booed as well. Each player down the line was booed. Some louder than others. Eddy Curry and Stephon Marbury heard it the worst.

James Dolan isn't here to hear it.

STARTING LINEUPS

KNICKS
Richardson
Randolph
Curry
Crawford
Marbury

BUCKS
Mason
Jianlian
Bogut
Redd
Williams

Enjoy the game.

For those seeking a positive outlook on last night's 45-point loss to the Celtics, here's the best I can do: The game ended. There. Go hug a teddy bear and keep telling yourself things aren't as bad as they seem.

That is like a steward on the Titanic telling the captain, "At least the bow is still afloat."

For everyone else who can see the disaster the Knicks are, the most telling statements after the game came not from a Knicks player, but from Kevin Garnett. In his postgame interview with TNT's Craig Sager, KG was asked about Stephon Marbury.

"I don't know, Steph's different from how he was in Minnesota," Garnett said. "You just don't come out and quit. You got to have a reaason or someone has to make you quit."

That sounded like concern from an opponent who was shocked his team could beat another with such ease.

Quit? That's a dangerous accusation. No player would ever dare to admit it. Neither would a coach who knows there is no recovery from such a place.

Quite frankly, I don't think the Knicks quit with intention. This was more like surrendering a fight they realized they had no chance of winning. A poor shooting start put them down quickly and they subconsciously gave up after that. When Isiah Thomas went to his second unit, it was already too late. Not enough offense, too little defense.

I think Eddy Curry is front-and-center in this one. His was the one matchup you would say the Knicks should dominate. Instead, Curry made Kendrick Perkins look like Bill Russell. Curry had several early touches on the post and showed no interest in banging Perkins deep and going up strong. The jump hooks were as half-hearted as they were off the mark. I mean, a 6-11, 285 pound man is settling for jump hooks while his team is down by 12...14...16...18...?

At least while Zach Randolph was missing several of his shots against Garnett, Randolph made aggressive attempts to grab some rebounds against KG. Curry was practically invisible and never seemed emotionally into making a difference for his team.

The good news is, the Knicks get to play again tonight. The bad news is, the Knicks have to play again tonight. The Bucks are healthy, which means they're not the walkover they were considered last season. How will the backcourt of Marbury and Jamal Crawford do against Mo Williams and Michael Redd? If it is anything like last night in Boston, when neither did much to get through screens, be very afraid.

You would think, as professionals, these players have too much pride to lay down once again, especially at home, especially a night after getting their doors blown off by 45 in front of the entire NBA nation. You would think the Knicks have it in them to show something tonight against the Bucks.

You would also think the owner of this team has to eventually reach a point where reality of where this team is outweighs the fantasy of what Thomas has tried to convince us it could be. There is undoubtedly a deep-seeded problem here, which I personally think is more than the simple idea that Thomas and Marbury don't get along or the rest of the team is still upset about Phoenix.

The problem is a lack of leadership, which results in a lack of accountability. I actually like about 80 percent of this group. They have a core of excellent role players, guys who would be great foot soldiers if the team had one main component, an all-star entitity around which the rest revolve. The Celtics had that same problem until Garnett arrived. He set a standard there that everyone follows and now suddenly Paul Pierce is a winner, Doc Rivers is a great coach and Danny Ainge is a genius.

Who sets the standard for these Knicks?

The Knicks haven't lacked national attention over the past few months, but tonight against the Celtics here in Boston and on TNT, they'll get to show what they are as a basketball team instead of what the nation mostly sees: a controversy-riddled franchise with more issues than Britney and Lindsay combined.

“Oh yeah, it’s a big game for us," Zach Randolph said after the team's shoot around at the LA Sports Club downtown. "We can prove to the whole world. A lot of people doubt us now, but if we can come out and compete with one of the best teams in the NBA, it will do a lot for our confidence.”

The Randolph-Kevin Garnett matchup is always one to watch -- “I love playing against him . . . We had a lot of great battles in the West," Z-Bo said. "We went at each other.” -- but two other key matchups will be Quentin Richardson on Paul Pierce and Stephon Marbury on Ray Allen. Isiah Thomas wouldn't reveal his plans, but you have to assume Marbury will start against Allen and Jamal Crawford will defend Rajon Rondo.

A good hard-fought game -- win or lose -- will go a long way for the Knicks tonight. I almost wish I could be home watching just to hear Marv Albert call a Knicks game.

Enjoy the game. Hopefully it'll be as entertaining as the teams' previous meeting in the preseason at the Garden.

* * *

Fixers, I must address the topic of the New York Observer story about the Knicks beat writers. For anyone reading this blog over the past year, nothing in that story should be news to you. Some of you have even asked in the mailbags about these issues and I've answered them just like I answered the Observer's questions.

What you should also consider is that we were separately approached by the Observer. No one sought them out to write this story. From my perspective, I was asked questions and answered them honestly. I also made sure the reporter understood that to endure an 82-game season, the travel, the back-to-backs the practices and the tons of missed family time and last-second changes in schedule, you have to have a passion for the subject you cover. If you don't, you'd be swallowed whole. The job sounds easy, but it's not as simple as going to a game and writing about it.

So, again, if you don't have passion, you can't possibly do the job. You owe it to the readers, the fans, to have passion and show it. And from that passion comes the emotional response you saw in that story.

Should any of you care that the team treats the media with contempt and offers minimal access to its players? Yes. Because that impacts the stories we write. It's not about being miserable and that comes through in our attitude, but more that we're all sharing the same scraps of information drawn from the same limited conversations. As I said in the story, it only leads to speculation.

As I also said in the story, the environment right now on the beat is maddening, because you know it's the Garden, it's New York City. You know this should be the greatest job in town. I think it could be, regardless of how the team is doing.

But no one tried to suggest we have it so difficult and it is ridiculous for anyone -- especially a fellow reporter -- to compare us to those embedded reporters in the Middle East. That kind of comparison is asinine because by saying it, you're suggesting no one in America has the right to complain about their working conditions as it related to their job, because it still doesn't compare to the conditions faced by the Reuters journalist in Tikrit.

Hey, I bet at least that person gets an ocassional one-on-one with a General.

Does it mean none of us can call out this team for limiting our ability to give you the best possible coverage? Does it mean we should go along with their restrictions and give you nothing more than just the canned quotes from the locker room and, at most, the agenda-based comments from agents?

Is that what you want? A pack of reporters who just take whatever the team dishes out? Regurgiates the rhetoric? Doesn't demand that the city's lone NBA franchise raise their standards not only on the court, but off of it?

Aren't you the least bit alarmed that a guy who grew up a Knicks fan just like you, and dreamed of one day covering the team finally realized this dream only to find it didn't come close to living up to the expectation? And it didn't, especially after traveling the NBA for a year and seeing how it's done elsewhere.

I won't even get into how much I realize the Islanders were more of a classy organization that I realized based on the fact that they took a lot of negative pub and still had the understanding that some negative pub is unavoidable as long as it was fair. And no matter what, they had the decency to treat you like a human being even after some of the worst of times. (For the record, by the way, No, I never said I wanted to go back to the Islanders beat. I said I never really wanted to leave it in the first place, but now that I'm here, I want to be around to see this franchise and this beat get back to the elite level it once had).

If demanding a greater standard out of your team isn't what you want out of your beat writer, then enjoy the controlled, watered-down company line info you get on the team's website. You're clearly in the wrong place.

Fixers, you know I'm a fan of the YouTube. I'm also a fan of the NBA's marketing campaign for this season. Here's one from the Knicks perspective.....as created by vladepejajohn:

This video could go on forever...

Where quit in Phoenix, play in LA happens.

Where reminders that Pat Riley once "failed" here, too, happens.

Where (showing Isiah's video deposition) happens.

Where (showing Dolan slouching and scowling at his courtside seat) happens.

Where injuries and Jerome James happen.

Where Charles Oakley on the Jumbotron doesn't happen.

Where dry, overbreaded and ridiculously overpriced chicken fingers happens.

Where "in-house" matters happen.

Where feverishly transcribing reporters' conversations with players on a BlackBerry happens.

Where Red Once Sat Here happens (every time I'm on the court during pregame).

Where all is forgiven happens.

What do some of you have to offer?

* *

Very entertaining game last night.

The Knicks beat the Jazz playing a very aggressive style of offense, predicated off the guard play. Dribble drives, drive-and-dishes, using a pick for jumpers. Ocassionally Zach Randolph would get some bites on a sideline isolation. Eddy Curry? A few post-ups, but certainly not a focal point of the offense as Isiah Thomas had wanted to do over the past two seasons.

Still it all worked wonderfully for one night. It helps that the Knicks shot 53.2 percent from the floor. Hit 7 of 17 from downtown. Scored 52 of their 113 points in the paint. Another 14 off the fast break.

And what from it did we learn?

That it's once again Stephon Marbury's ball.

Against a good Utah team (yes, they were playing the second game of a road back-to-back) they won playing Marbury's way. It was his game, under his control, and he put forth a vintage Marbury performance. There were the strong drives to the basket, when he would wrap the ball under his arms like a running back, power by his man and explode to the rim. He would draw defense and kick to open perimeter shooters (if Quentin Richardson and Jamal Crawford were better from three, Marbury would have easily had double-figure assists). He would flip a few passes to cutting big men. He would use a screen to step back and nail a three.

This was the style Marbury developed in New York and brought back with him when he became a Knick. Not the inside-outside "power" game that Isiah was trying to push on him this season. This is the game Marbury was playing last March, when he was one of the best players in the league for most of the month as the Knicks climbed into the playoff race, albeit tentitavely. Less emphasis on Eddy and more on Marbury.

"I did what I normally do when I am playing my game," Marbury said to the media horde that surrounded his locker after his 28-point performance. "For me, I think it’s important for us to stay in one mindset to continue to go forward. We play a style every night the same way, we give ourselves a chance.”

So meet the new boss. Same as the old boss.

* * *

* - Along with Marbury's newfound happiness in a return to his style of play, a reason for the Knicks recent successes is their return to health. Isiah can go to his second unit -- Nate Robinson, David Lee, Renaldo Balkman and Jared Jeffries -- to get the energy he needs. Remember that group made big impacts in the first two wins of the season, then Balkman and Jeffries both were out with injuries and Robinson played through a nagging hammy.

* - You have to admire Deron Williams' handle. Might be the best in the NBA. Ridiculous crossover moves and he takes it to the rack with heart, much like Marbury at his best. Carlos Boozer is strong, but among the players on the Jazz, I'll take Paul Millsap on my team any day. You can't have enough guys like him, Ryan Gomes and Andres Nocioni.

* - Remember Thursday night's game against the Celtics in Boston is a TNT special. Some rare national exposure, not that the Knicks have lacked national attention this season.

First challenge of a challenging week for the Knicks. Marbury vs. Williams. Randolph vs. Boozer. AK47 in the house. Mehmet Okur pulling Eddy Curry away from the basket on one end, but having to defend him at the other.

Let's see if the Knicks really turned a corner after Saturday's win over Chicago.

STARTING LINEUP

KNICKS
Randolph
Richardson
Curry
Crawford
Marbury

* - No Knick injuries, unless you want to continue to include Jerome James (left knee tendinitis, right bone spur and cyst). Randolph Morris and Wilson Chandler will also be inactive tonight.

JAZZ
Boozer
Kirilenko
Okur
Brewer
Williams

Enjoy the game.

Welcome to a new week, Fixers, where optimism abounds because a new month is only six days away, the spirit of Christmas is still quite as fresh as that new wreath you just tacked to your front door and you want so desperately to accept that, after Saturday's win over the 2-9 Bulls, order is finally restored with your team.

Stephon Marbury had a good all-around game, which included him shutting down Ben Gordon, and played the kind of game Isiah Thomas wants from him. Thomas heaped praise on his point guard and made reference to yet another nasty November -- the second straight year Thomas and Marbury have been at odds and the team has gotten off to a bad start -- coming to an end. Though Jim Dolan has yet to say anything publicly, Thomas is also talking with the renewed confidence of a man who has been given some reassurances.

It shall be well.

However, November isn't quite done with the Knicks just yet.

With Deron Williams and the Utah Jazz awaiting tonight at the Garden, Marbury and the Knicks have more work ahead before they can distance themselves from the chaos of the past two weeks. There's also the Celtics in Boston on Thursday on TNT. Then the ever-elusive Mo Williams and the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday. Then December opens with Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns on Monday. Then Jason Kidd and the Nets....

....And you're already getting the urge to slice all of those stupid blow-up characters on your neighbor's lawn.

* * *

* - Anybody catch my man K-Berg on Fox 5's "Sports Extra" last night? Talked a little Knicks, brought some lucidity to the wild couple of weeks of media frenzy and showed off some argyle socks. Sweet.

* - Ben Wallace's lack of any kind of physical impact in Saturday's game was glaring. He had hardly any lift at all while going after rebounds one-handed and practically let Eddy Curry post up at will under the rim. If that's the best Chicago's going to get out of Big Ben, the Bulls are in bigger trouble than we thought.

* - Jamal Crawford is a heck of a guy and maybe that is why he's rarely taken to task about his defense. But let's be honest . . .

* - Fixer Nation update: We're having a girl, my second daughter. Now I have to build another tower.

* - Suggestion for Mike Rowe of the Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs" show (one of my favorites): Try cleaning the Garden after any event. To make it really interesting, do it when the circus is in town and the Knicks have a home game that night. Watch for the steaming piles in the hallway. Some of it may just be rhetoric. Some may also be blog entries.

Isiah Thomas in his pregame address still won't say if James Dolan has given him any assurances, but he is speaking a lot more confidently, which suggests Dolan has.

Thomas, who was again heavily booed during pregame introductions, then went on to say that winning with the Knicks isn't easy.

"A lot of people have tried to pass the test of winning in New York, a lot of people have failed," Isiah told the media. "I beleive only one coach ahs won a championship here. A lot have failed, but a lot of people come and get tested. And so here we are and my job is to try to survive this test."

STARTING LINEUPS

KNICKS
Marbury (also booed)
Crawford
Richardson
Randolph
Lee

* - Everyone healthy and playing, including Renaldo Balkman.

BULLS
Hinrich
Gordon
Nocioni
Thomas
Wallace

* - Big break for the Knicks: No Luol Deng. He made the trip but is out again with back pain.

BT says whatsup to Fixer Nation.

Enjoy the game

It was an 8 p.m. start and we had early deadlines. So what most of you saw in your morning newspaper left at the end of your driveway is what we in the business call a "running" story, or something written on the fly as the game is going on and sent into the office in bits and pieces. An editor pieces it together at the office and...well...usually it's pretty ugly.

Here is what I filed for the "Late" edition, which you'll find at most delis and newsstands. Quotes and all. This version didn't make the website because apparently our web people turn into pumpkins if they work past midnight.

Fixers, have yourselves a great Thanksgiving with your families and friends. God bless.

--------------------------------------------------------

By Alan Hahn

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – This is where it began for Isiah Thomas some 25 years ago and there is reason to wonder if this is where it will end for him. A night after he was booed off the Madison Square Garden floor and chased with chants of “Fire Is-iah!” he was welcomed rather warmly here in the town where his NBA career reached its pinnacle.
Perhaps the sellout crowd at the Palace at Auburn Hills still has a soft spot for the franchise’s greatest and most accomplished player, whose coaching career continues to reach new lows with the Knicks. Last night it was a 98-86 defeat to the Pistons that extended the Knicks’ losing streak to eight games.
Will he be around to see a possible ninth or even the end of this misery? Thomas’ Knicks host the Chicago Bulls in a matinee at the Garden on Saturday.
Before the game, Thomas continued to put the onus on himself – “When you’re in a hole like this, it’s not about the players,” he said, “It’s really about the coach. My job is to pull us out of this.” – and also spoke like a coach who sounded as if he was pleading his case to owner James Dolan, who will have a lot to consider during Thanksgiving dinner today.
“I understand what needs to be done,” Thomas said, “and I’m capable of delivering what needs to be done.”
Maybe, as one Palace spectator suggested, if he put on a uniform.
Eddy Curry led the Knicks (2-9) with 26 points and Jamal Crawford had 16 points. Chauncey Billups had 25 points and 15 assists for the Pistons (7-4) and played like the point guard Thomas has been longing for.
“He did everything that they needed, assists or baskets," Thomas said. "He had a great floor game and he also had a great scoring night.”
While Thomas offered kudos to Billups, it was impossible not to notice how Stephon Marbury went out of his way to praise how the Pistons play under coach Flip Saunders, who had Marbury and a young Kevin Garnett in Minnesota all those years ago.
“Those guys play in a very good system and know where to go at all times,” Marbury said of the Pistons. “They have counters to everything that you do defensively and they don’t rely on the first or second option. They get it to the third or fourth option. Playing for Flip, you see the execution. You know what’s going on.”
Most opponents these days can’t figure out what is going on with the Knicks. Pistons guard Flip Murray went as far to suggest the Knicks barely gave it an effort last night. He should have seen the performance Tuesday night against the Warriors.
“They looked like they didn’t want to compete,” Murray said. “They were just out there. All you had to do was look at their body language. I don’t know what’s going on over there, but they have a lot of issues.”
The Thomas-Marbury affair is the key one, but Curry and Zach Randolph haven’t exactly taken the team by the reigns during this losing streak, either. Curry’s offensive numbers look gaudy (he shot 12 of 19 from the floor), but he was practically non-existent on defense and managed just five rebounds in 37:20.
Randolph had his worst game as a Knick. He managed 13 points but had just 5 rebounds. It was the first time he didn’t record a double-double this season, but the statistics only tell part of it. Randolph, who had four turnovers, fell into some selfish habits with the ball. When he didn’t have the ball, he didn’t have the same kind of intensity. Thomas benched him for the entire second quarter.
“Tonight wasn’t a good game for me,” Randolph said.
The Knicks actually were in this game midway through the second quarter when a Jared Jeffries alley-oop dunk made it a 47-45 deficit with 3:11 left the half. But Billups, who had 10 assists in the first quarter, drew Marbury’s third foul of the half and hit both free throws to start an 8-0 run to take a 55-45 lead at halftime. The deficit was 17 by the end of the third quarter.
Notes & Quotes: A week after he went AWOL on the team in Phoenix, Marbury opted to travel with the team here to play instead of attending his aunt’s funeral in Brooklyn . . . Renaldo Balkman, who did not make the trip, missed a second straight game with soreness in his right ankle. Balkman has now missed four of the past five games because of trouble with the ankle.

A good workout at the hotel fitness center can often result in lucid thinking. Perhaps its the endorphins and adrenaline. Or the fact that the Knicks were all over the ESPN monster in the fitness center. Can't get away from it.

And it made me reconsider my previous blog, where I suggested you as fans have no voice with this team because James Dolan doesn't need your money, therefore he doesn't have the pressure to please the fanbase or else suffer the financial losses of ticket sales (which have done very well, I'm told. Perhaps a residual effect of the Broadway blackout?).

The Garden revenue makes up three percent of Cablevision revenue, Dolan said last year. Three percent. Don't expect shareholders to even notice.

Don't expect Dolan to cave just because you aren't packing the place anymore.

That's why you should use your voice. What you did at the Garden on Tuesday night is exactly what you need to keep doing, voice your displeasure with the condition of your franchise. Don't stop coming to games. Don't stop caring. Be loud and be heard. Make Dolan rub his ears and wipe his face and slump deeper into that courtside seat of his until he has heard enough.

Empty seats don't make the most noise in this case. Fill that place and re-claim it.

Let him hear you until he can't take it anymore.

Fixers, Knicks fans and New Yorkers: you are powerless.

Dig the passion, tho. There’s nothing like 19,000 total strangers finding harmony in misery. Chanting and booing. It’s all you got.

But the gritted-teeth statements that you refuse to spend your money to see this slop at the Garden until James Dolan makes changes are essentially useless. Remember what Dolan said a year ago: the Garden’s teams make up three percent of Cablevision’s revenue.

Three percent.

You really think they’ll feel the absence of your ticket?

* * *

I keep hearing about this moment caught on camera in the fourth quarter last night that shows Eddy Curry laughing on the bench. It is here I will recall what Charles Oakley said to me last night at halftime: “I think you’re going to lose games, but it’s how you lose games,” Oakley said. “We wouldn’t have guys on this court smiling, shaking guys’ hands the whole game, laughing and joking. They’re not serious.”

Ya think?

In Oakley's words: “I don’t see no leaders. It’s just bad karma.”

* * *

I don’t blame the fans for conjuring the “Fire Isiah!” chant, but what is solved if Thomas is gassed and Stephon Marbury remains? Do you expect whomever takes over – since you asked, Don, the guess here is Dolan would go short-term with Glen Grunwald as GM and Herb Williams as coach – to so easily rid the team of No. 3?

If you remove No. 3, you remove the tension from the room. And this isn’t a good tension, which is what accountability usually produces during the grind of a long season. This is the tension of a player that most of the team has a difficult time liking, let alone respecting.

Truth is, they collectively had a great respect for Isiah. Sorry, did I just write “had”? Surely I meant “have” . . .

* * *

Still too early to present lists of candidates, but since you're asking, I think Greg Anthony should get an interview to see how he compares to the more obvious big names such as Colangelo and Kiki.

* * *

Gotta love the wars-within-the-war. One city tabloid reports something, the other shoots it down. The Post today promoted a suggestion that the Daily News has been the victim of some bad scoops, a "hoax" as it was written, especially regarding the story that Isiah threw the team out of practice on Monday.

I've heard conflicting reports on the matter. Not enough to go on. But I can say this with confidence: This beat is so much fun!

* * *

Just got into Dey-twah. Raining and miserable. Fitting. Don't forget it's an 8 p.m. start.

I’ll check in tonight pregame.

Most of you probably know by now, Stephon Marbury is back in the starting lineup tonight against the Warriors at the Big Top. The circus has returned to the Garden.

I can't be the only one that is dying to know what dirt Marbury has on his coach.

How will the Garden faithful receive him during the pregame introductions? Will he be introduced last -- the sacred place once owned by Patrick Ewing -- as he has been since his arrival?

We've already had our uproar about the whole Isiah-Steph thing. How the players were alienated and the room is definitely fractured somewhat off of last week's controversy. I just want to know why Isiah would choose this game; the first home game after an 0-4 road trip that included his player ditching his team on the first day of the trip. Why start him now?

Why subject this punch-drunk team to the hostility of the fans and the intensity of the media? Why bring more controversy to the table?

One theory presented to me earlier today was that Marbury is likely to hear less boos among the starting lineup (with all the music and noise the Garden can muster into the sound-system to drown you out) than when he goes to the scorer's table to check-in.

I disagree. Isiah can insert Marbury during a timeout and he can be quickly introduced as the music dies down off a timeout. It's been done before.

This team is completely engulfed in a culture of chaos right now. Isiah is eschewing accountability in his desperation for wins. Marbury clearly wants to start and figures he plays better as a starter than off the bench. As he said earlier today, the team was 2-3 when he was sent to the bench and has lost four straight since. The move didn't accomplish much on paper.

But it could have accomplished a great deal in the room. The short term pain for the long term gain.

Instead, Isiah backtracked and turned one controversial day in Phoenix into a disaster that just won't go away.

Enjoy the game, if you can.

Every hotel has one. It's for when you leave something in your room, like a cell phone charger or incriminating evidence of the night before (what happens in Sacramento, stays in Sacramento).

Here is a list of things I have for the Lost & Found.

LOST: One road trip, consisting of four games, two of which were close defeats and two consisting of embarrassing blowouts. None are recoverable.

LOST: Optimism from a 2-1 start. Maybe be located after a few more wins, but that may be difficult to locate with games against Golden State, Detroit, Chicago, Utah and Boston on the horizon.

FOUND: Disdain for a decision to give a player 34 minutes the day after he selfishly abandons his team and creates an unnecessary media circus around his team.

LOST: Some respect for a coach who went against his team’s decision not to play that player.

FOUND: A couple of polished post moves, owned by David Lee. Also found was his double-figure rebounding ability, which comes when he gets minutes.

LOST: One beloved grandmother. Rest in peace, Lettie Randolph.

LOST: Me, at U.S. Airways Center, to the point I took an elevator that opened in the middle of the Suns practice gym as they were going over their sets. Oops. ‘Scuse me, Coach D.

LOST: One usually accurate shooting touch. If found, please return to Quentin Richardson. Touch your forehead with your fists.

LOST: A good night’s sleep for most of the road trip. This item expects to be recovered on Sunday afternoon on an oversized couch.

FOUND: A reason to crack a smile in the midst of turmoil. A woman who worked at the Pepsi Center brought an autograph book for some players to sign. When she approached Mardy Collins, she swooned, “You have beautiful eyes.” His jump shot could use a little makeup, however.

FOUND: A reason to wonder when or if Eddy Curry will ever have it in him to consistently play with the intensity that was the trademark of great Knick centers such as Patrick Ewing and Willis Reed.

LOST: One apparently exaggerated scouting report by Isiah Thomas, who suggested Fred Jones would improve the team’s perimeter defense.

LOST: One rookie named Demetris Nichols.

FOUND: United Economy Plus has way more leg room than standard coach seats, but you have to pay an extra $44 for them.

FOUND: A reason to sue United for height discrimination. It is physically impossible for a 6’6” man to sit comfortably in a coach seat.

LOST: Not a season. Not yet. “A lot of teams aren’t where they need to be right now in the Eastern Conference,” Zach Randolph said, “so we still got a chance.”

FOUND: They’re already playing Christmas music on the radio in Denver.

FOUND: Kevin Martin is a hell of a basketball player for a really skinny dude who looks like he’s 16 years old. Great off the cut, terrific range and touch.

FOUND: I can never get used to walking out of Staples Center in LA at 11 p.m. and realizing it is 2 a.m. back home.

LOST: The time over the past week to keep this blog lively and entertaining while also keeping up with the comments.

FOUND: The continued confidence that I can toss the keys to the Fixers, who keep the place buzzing.

LOST: One very disturbed, frustrated person who regularly posted abusive and antagonistic comments on this blog that almost never brought something productive to the site. Carry on my wayward son.

FOUND: A home for Grant Hill, who looks in great shape in Phoenix.

FOUND: A reason for Thomas to start giving Wilson Chandler more of a look.

FOUND: It interesting that George Karl pulled his starters out of that blowout win over the Knicks early in the fourth, but never called off the three-point bomb squad.

LOST: My desire for In & Out Burger, the California delight, after ill-advisedly scoffing down a Double-Double after the game in Sacramento. It feels as if the grease is still oozing from my pores. Never again. You are banned from my body like just like Steak & Shake.

FOUND: The Knicks aren’t any better playing a 2-3 zone.

FOUND: Even Ron Artest has lost his interest in being a Knick.

FOUND: One hug from my kids, which I’d been waiting for since last Monday.

FOUND: That, to me, my wife is more emotionally, intellectually and physically appealing than Jessica Simpson. Sorry babe.

FOUND: That Peter Botte needs to realize that his adorably snarky daughter Hayley is long overdue for a spanking.

We come on the Sloop John B
My Knicks Fixers and me
Around LA town we couldn't roam
Writing all night
Got sick on the flight
The team's so broke up
I wanna go home . . .

"I can't believe what y'all are writing," one player said to me this week.

What, I said, are we making it up?

"I'm not saying that," he replied, "I just can't believe it."

Neither can we . . .

So hoist up the John B sail
See how the dust will set
Look for the captain who's sure
they let him go home.
He wanted to go home,
(let him go home)
Why would they let him go home?
This is the worst trip I've ever been on

"Just another week for the Knicks," another player mumbled.

Hoist up the John B sail,
See how the main sail sets
Call for the Captain who's sure to let me go home
They wanna go home . . .

The weary Knicks, coming off a double-overtime loss in Sacramento last night, take an 0-3 record on this road trip and a five-game losing streak onto the court tonight against the Nuggets in Denver. Zach Randolph is expected back and the Knicks will need his rested legs, not to mention his ability to finish. It wouldn't hurt if Renaldo Balkman's sprained ankle suddenly felt a whole lot better . . .

But I'll say this much about the group, there was a palpable sense of urgency in their effort in Sacramento. But, as I wrote in the paper, fundamental mistakes will almost always undermine the best of efforts. And the continuation of these kinds of mistakes will eventually extinguish the fire one needs to bring that kind of effort every night.

This is a team that appeared to be a mess off the court, though they seem to be dealing with it. But what might be more of a concern is how much of a mess they are on the court. The offense just doesn't have flow, movement and a sense of direction. The Knicks score mostly off talent, not teamwork. The few backdoors, drive-and-dish or alley-oop plays you see are just not enough.

And that, Fixers, is what Isiah Thomas is talking about in regards to his PG play. They need direction. Leadership at that position. Mardy Collins is a nice player, but his demeanor doesn't suggest he's suddenly going to take the wheel of this team and drive it on a rail. Nate Robinson, as much as I've admired the change in his attitude and committment, still has more to understand, especially when it comes to taking care of the ball (not over-dribbling, clock-awareness and making the right kind of passes).

Stephon Marbury isn't being used as the point guard anymore. His new role is as a shooting guard. That's where Isiah has played him the most in the past two games. His defense still isn't there, even though his effort at that end of the floor is. And what he used to be able to do with such remarkable consistency -- finish strong off the dribble-drive and bomb away from downtown -- is failing him right now.

Tired legs tonight. Weary spirits, no doubt. This isn't a time to feel sorry for one's self, however. It's also not a time for some of you fans to be upset with the coverage. There are realities that must be presented about your team, no matter how difficult they are to read.

If you care about this team, you care about finding a solution. You care about keeping the bar raised where it should be for a New York team with the highest payroll in the league instead of lowering it so others don't have to feel the pressure to perform. You always should demand more out of your team.

* *

One programming note: Some of you may have experienced some trouble with the comments area recently. The web people are trying to address a problem all of the Newsday blogs are having with abusive people. I apologize if anyone had trouble posting but hopefully the problem has been solved.

I love the interaction and I'm also sorry this week has been so busy that I couldn't get to taking the time to read the comments, not to mention taking the time to put up more entertaining blogs. As I said, this has been the trip from hell for everyone. So why not throw in a head cold (approaches on the flights have been a wonderfully masochistic experience) while we're at it.

Hoist up the John B sail,
see how the main sail sets
Call for the Captain who's sure to let me go home
I wanna go home.

By Alan Hahn

SACRAMENTO – Team Turmoil and it’s wayward point guard put up as much of a unified front as it could, but when you can’t defend and can’t make layups and can’t take care of the ball – all transgressions that have plagued them over the past five games – not even effort can overcome that kind of controversy.

Kevin Martin scored 43 points, including seven in double-overtime for the Kings, who defeated the Knicks 123-118, Friday at Arco Arena. The losing streak is now at five for the Knicks (2-6), who are also 0-3 on this West Coast road trip from hell, which started with Stephon Marbury’s flee in Phoenix. It ends Saturday in Denver against the Nuggets.

Isiah Thomas, who coached Friday’s game with Game 7 intensity, said he had no concerns about what the potential of an 0-4 trip could mean for his status as coach.

“We got a lot of basketball left to play," Thomas said. "There’s a long season left. We haven’t even got to Game 10.”

The Knicks started 2-6 last season as well. Thomas' job status was an issue then and it is one now, at least on the periphery. Just another log to toss on the fire.

“It’s a tough week, definitely a tough week," Eddy Curry said. "But this is our job, to respond to the pressure and win games. Right now we’re not going a good job at winning games.”

The Knicks twice had chances to win Friday. David Lee, who had a monster game (career-high 24 points and 16 rebounds in 49:54) starting in place of Zach Randolph (funeral), missed on a put-back at the buzzer to send the game into the second overtime. Curry missed a layup at the buzzer of regulation to force overtime.

“Just missed it," Curry said of his point-blank look. "Can’t blame it on anybody but myself. Isiah put me in a position to win the game and I didn’t come through. I’ve got myself to blame for that.”

Curry and Lee weren't the only ones troubled by missed chippies, which has become as much of a concerning epidemic as the poor perimeter defense.

“It’s a team-wide failure," Thomas said. "We had plenty of opportunities to win the game. We missed our opportunities. Layups, free throws, turnovers; you name it, we did it.”

Curry led the Knicks with 27 points and 9 rebounds and Jamal Crawford added 24 points but shot 9 for 27 from the field. Stephon Marbury, who came off the bench for a second straight game, played 43:44, the third most of any Knick, and had 15 points and 4 assists.

Mardy Collins, who started in his place, played less than half of that time (18:41). But in reality, Marbury didn't play much at the point. Thomas used him more at shooting guard and rotated Collins, Crawford and Nate Robinson (17 points) at the point guard position.

Marbury, who went AWOL on Tuesday when informed that he was headed to the bench, played his second game as the NBA’s most expensive sub.

“A decision was made for me to come off the bench; I’m willing to take on that role,” Marbury said. “I’m not happy and comfortable with that, but that’s something I have to do because the coach made a decision to do that.”

After pouting for a day, Marbury now says “I’m not going to cry about it” and now says he feels the benching is “definitely lighting a fire under me.” He even went as far to suggest he could compete with Manu Ginobili and Jason Terry for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.

Forrest Gump might liken daily chats with Marbury to a box of chocolates.

Thomas, a Hall of Fame point guard, sounded as if he was describing himself when he outlined his requirements for the position.

“We need organization within the team, we need our team to be organized out on the floor,” Thomas said. “Understand the bonus situation, understand time, clock, clock management, game situation, foul situation, timeout situation.

“That’s what the PG is supposed to do: understand the mismatches, make sure the ball is in the right place at the right time,” Thomas continued. “All of those things he is capable of doing. I think he’s excellent in doing them, we just want him to do it all the time.”

Picked a fine time to get sick.

After filing this I am climbing back into my hotel bed and not waking up until gametime.

Here's the rundown, Fixers, for this extremely critical game tonight against the Kings here in Sacra-tomato. At 0-2 already on this trip, the Knicks need to salvage these last two games, which are back to back. After tonight, it's in Denver against the Nuggs in the Mile High. Splendid.

* - Mardy Collins will start at the point. Stephon Marbury says he is now OK with his new role coming off the bench. He even made a joking reference to competing with Jason Terry for Sixth Man of the Year.

* - No one would talk about the issues at hand, including the apparent vote by the players that was ignored by Isiah Thomas. You can be sure that it did take place, but no one is talking about it. Thomas used the "in-house matter" phrase when asked about it. We're being told to believe them when they say everything's cool within the team. No problems, no issues.

S'all good.

* - Renaldo Balkman is questionable for the game. He had an MRI taken last night of his right ankle. MRI revealed a bone bruise and a sprained right ankle.

Sledgehammer, meet head. I need some asprin and a pillow, stat.

Check here late tonight (or early tomorrow morning for all you back East) for a full game story with quotes after the game.

You look at the boxscore and you see Curry had 16 points. He had 12 rebounds. A rare double-double for the big fella. But I watch the game and I see Curry going 40 MPH in a 55. I see him offer one hand as defense against a spin move by Kaman.

I see him get a rebound and putback with 2:14 left that brought the Knicks to within 77-75 in the fourth quarter. No one was near him, so it's more an indictment of the Clippers awful box-out efforts.

What you may see is a double-double. What I saw was a guy who should have -- could have -- done more. I am putting it on his shoulders, as much as it should be on Stephon Marbury's shoulders. Curry teased everyone with that brief where-the-hell-did-that-come-from fourth quarter stint where he played with passion and grit. He rebounded, blocked shots and went strong to the basket.

During warmups before the Clippers game, Eddy was going through the motions. Drop-step, flip it at the rim. Drop-step, flip it at the rim.

Maddening.

Jamal Crawford doesn't get a pass, either. Like the guy personally, but he has 19 turnovers during this four-game losing streak and 10 in the past two games alone. The officials are really targeting him with the carry calls.

While I'm at it, Quentin Richardson also hasn't been nearly the player he was last season when he still had back problems.

David Lee? Shoot off the fingertips, man. Too much palm on the shot. He hardly played in the second half against the Clippers, which makes you wonder if Isiah is losing confidence having Lee out on the floor if he can't consistently hit shots when he's open. David's energy also seems to be at a lower level than it was last season.

* *

On the other hand, show me another Knick who played as hard as Zach Randolph on Wednesday.

He's the other guy who flew in the morning of the Clippers game to re-join the Knicks. Z-Bo, whose been in Indiana grieving the death of his grandmother, was clearly very emotional throughout the game. His game had a little too much anger in it as he had a few shoves with Tim Thomas and Aaron Williams. His shot was as heavy as his heart, no doubt.

"I was just trying to play hard and gut it out," he said. "Leave it out on the court. I played pretty well, but my game wasn’t there. I rebounded pretty well.”

Randolph finished with 16 points and 19 rebounds. And then flew right back to Indiana. The funeral for Lettie Randolph, whom Zach was very close to, is Friday. Zach will miss the game here in Sacramento, but he says he'll be back to finish the trip in Denver on Saturday.

* *

Think the Miami Heat would consider taking Marbury in exchange for Jason Williams in a package deal? Williams can be erratic and with Crawford's penchant for turnovers it might not be the most efficient backcourt. But Williams knows how to move the ball and has a pass-first mentality. OK, so you're not getting any better defensively, there, either.

But it can't be any worse.

Some of you may have heard about this by now -- remember, I'm three hours earlier and in the midst of traveling from LA to Sacramento -- but Johnny Ludden, the former longtime San Antonio Spurs writer who has moved on to Yahoo.com fame, posted a report last night after the Knicks loss to the Clippers that said the players voted against allowing Stephon Marbury to play in the game.

Isiah played him anyway and afterward it was clear that several players on the team were furious.

What kind of message does this send to someone such as Nate Robinson, who has done everything asked of him during the offseason?

So to answer that question in your head, Fixers, yes, it can get worse. And it's about to.

Stephon must have some serious dirt.

I'll check in from Sacramento . . .

Just got official word that Stephon Marbury has, indeed, met the team here in Los Angeles. There was no indication that he would or would not dress or play in tonight's game against the Clippers, but considering the injuries, he might have to.

I'll be headed to Staples Center in about two hours to meet the team there for pregame. There will be more, for sure, later.

Mardy Collins (sprained right foot) is questionable for the game. Renaldo Balkman (sprained right ankle) is considered doubtful.

Quentin Richardson is probable for tonight and Zach Randolph came out to play tonight but he'll head right back to Indiana for his grandmother's funeral on Friday.

All hands on deck.

There is a media stakeout at the Marbury home -- K-Berg is among them, so check his blog later for the details of that exciting assignment -- but before and after my flight from Phoenix to LA, it was suggested to me that Stephon might actually be on his way here to re-join the team.

The Knicks won't confirm. A team spokesman told me he hasn't been able to contact Marbury, who was quoted in The Post today as saying -- make that texting -- that he wouldn't be in LA.

As Berger wrote today, according to the collective bargaining agreement that the Knicks have the right to dock Marbury 1/110th of his salary for his absence in Phoenix, which comes out to about $180,000. It'll likely cost him another buck-eighty K if he misses tonight in LA.

Pretty soon you're talking about real money.

Stay tuned . . .

**

* - Just an update on Renaldo Balkman: his status remains uncertain -- team is calling it a "game-time decision" -- for tonight's game against the Clippers. They're calling it a sprained ankle, but it is not related to the stress reaction injury that had him out for the entire preseason. X-rays were negative, but it would be a surprise to see him on the court tonight. He left U.S. Airways arena in Phoenix on crutches.

* - Mardy Collins (sprained foot) said he expects to play tonight. Q-Rich might have to play through the hyper-extended elbow injury, just so the Knicks have enough bodies. Q said on Tuesday that he wanted to play, he just couldn't shoot.

I was watching footage of the old Frontier casino being demolished in Las Vegas. If only it was so easy. Just blow it up and start over.

Kaboom.

Tough time to be a Knicks fan. That 2-1 start was a nice run, though, wasn't it?

Fixers, yesterday was a mere firecracker in comparison to what it will really take to crumble this mess to its foundation and start over.

What you need to understand is, Marbury is probably going to be back in uniform sometime soon, perhaps before this road trip ends. What I want to know is, how do his teammates welcome him back?

How do you accept someone who bailed out on you on a game day, when you already were shorthanded without Zach Randolph and Quentin Richardson?

If there were any doubts about Marbury's self-centeredness, they were erased yesterday the moment he ignored the pleas of a few of his teammates -- not all, mind you, some were happy he was gone from the room -- and boarded the plane back to New York.

It was all about him, not his teammates.

Yes kids. Be like Starbury. Buy his sneakers. And when the going gets tough, bail out and abandon your team. Next he'll blame the media for blowing it out of proportion. You know that's coming.

I felt compelled to poll the room as much as I could after last night's loss in Phoenix. Without Z-Bo and Q, the Knicks probably would have lost even with Stephon in the lineup, but that's not the point. It's about loyalty to guys who have been loyal to you -- at least publicly -- despite all of the strange things you did throughout the summer. And how you made your sneaker tour a priority over showing up in shape last season. And how you are quick to point fingers, even when you attempt to take the blame, like when he suggested Jamal Crawford should have been in that corner when Marbury threw the ball away on Sunday.

Great teammate. Great leader.

I asked Eddy Curry after last night's game: how can you not be disappointed in him, if not furious?

Curry, one of Marbury's few friends on the team, paused.

Tough question, I then said. I know.

“Yeah, it’s a tough question, but you know what? You never really know what somebody is going through," Curry replied. "I’d like to think I’m pretty close to Steph. I mean, until I know what happened. We don’t know, nobody knows what happened so it’s kind of tough to pass judgement on him. We’ll continue to fight without him and of course we’d love to have him back. Until then, we’ve got to continue playing.”

That's Curry the diplomat. But when I asked a few other guys on the team in a casual conversation (no tape, no notebook), the responses were different. One just shook his head, gave me a look as if to say, "You know my answer" and walked away. Another said some guys on the team weren't upset that Marbury was gone.

According to the Daily News, Marbury has threatened he will dish some dirt on Isiah Thomas. Just sit back and watch that fire fight.

When the dust settles, there will be James Dolan, standing in front of the smoldering ruins, using Marbury's line from the preseason, "It shall be well."

It will, once these characters are finally removed.

And now for the latest Knicks controversy.

Stephon Marbury did not participate in this morning's shoot-around here in Phoenix, where the Knicks play the Suns tonight at U.S. Airways arena. Isiah Thomas acknowledged that Marbury was not with the team but said the veteran point guard would be welcomed back if he showed up in time for the game.

Right now, it appears Mardy Collins will start at the point against Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns and Nate Robinson, who says his hamstring is fine, will come off the bench.

Thomas repeatedly called the Marbury situation "an in-house matter" but offered enough information to suggest that Marbury bristled at the coach's displeasure with his play five games into the regular season.

Remember, at the end of the preseason, Thomas warned that the Marbury "we saw last November, we better not see that player this November." Last season Marbury was admittedly not in good condition and struggled to conform his outside-in game into Thomas' inside-out gameplan. But by midseason, Marbury was perhaps the best Knick night-in and night-out.

So what changed since then? Thomas wouldn't say. "In-house matter," he said.

Thomas would say what he expects out of the point guard spot and added that he believes Marbury can fill this role.

Thomas also called out Eddy Curry and Jamal Crawford, two other leaders on the team, for their performance so far in the early season.

Stay tuned . . .

Why can't I take consecutive days off without all hell breaking loose?

I hate referring to a competiting newspaper, but you can't ignore the story Frank Isola wrote today in the Daily News. "Stephon Marbury's Days With the Knicks Might Be Numbered" is the headline.

Do you really need a second sentance?

These kinds of bombshells always make for a fun start to the four-game road trip, which starts tonight here in Phoenix.

Anyone who has followed this blog knows my take on the Knicks PG situation. I don't know if Nate is the answer right now as a starter, but when his hamstring is healthy -- and clearly it is not -- he is a much better option on the defensive end, not to mention a better player to run the team's offense (now that he's embraced the idea of understanding the offense as a whole and not just knowing where he is supposed to go).

It will be next to impossible to move Marbury's contract. To buy him out of the $42 mil still left on the contract would blow away any of the previous buyout numbers, including Larry Brown's walking money. The Cablevision investors will be livid, once again.

But as we've been saying here, there is a definitely need for change. But how do they do it?

I'll check in after this morning's shoot-around.

What more can I add?
The lineups:
Knicks (2-2)
Marbury
Crawford
Curry
Richardson
Lee

Heat (0-5)
Williams
Davis
O'Neal
Penny Hardaway
Haslem

...And Jessica Simpson has never made eye contact with me. But i do have some Knicks news for you.
Zach Randolph's grandmother died late Friday night and the Knicks' power forward returned to Indiana. He is questionable for tomorrow's game against the 0-5 Heat. More likely he'll rejoin the team in Phoenix on Tuesday. That certainly doesn't help with Shaq coming to town.
Isiah Thomas didn't say David Lee would start, which leads to the supposition that Malik Rose will start and defend Shaq. If Randolph is out, you don't want Eddy Curry guarding Shaq and picking up three fouls in the first 44 seconds.
Also, Dwyane Wade might play. He hasn't yet this season. It'll be a game time decision tomorrow.
Finally, tickets are still available for the game. If you're in the area, come on by! But if you're a starlet hoping to make eye contact with Alan, he won't be there. Sorry.

Before I get into my stuff here, read Ken Berger's column on Patrick Ewing. Money.

OK, to matters of today (and last night).

* *

Fixers, I'm putting out a bull**** alert.

Twice in one night Isiah Thomas insulted my intelligence. First, before the he tried to suggest that Jerome James would have "looked better" if Eddy Curry wasn't around -- which suggests Jerome decided not to be in shape because he became a backup center -- and then after the game he denied concerns that his team is giving up over 105 points per game after four games.

"We'll get better," he said. "It's the fourth game of the season and we played agaisnt two high-scoring teams that took a lot of shot. We're not playing against teams that hold the basketball. When you look at possessions within the course of a game, Denver puts the ball up and Orlando puts the ball up. We'll eventually play against some teams that don't shoot as often and as quick as these two teams do and the point total will come down.

"The thing that I'm concerned with the most is whether we win or lose the basketball game. If you win the game, you know, that's all that matters. And we lost the game by not taking care of the basketball."

When did Paul Westhead take over as head