Is There More to Marbury’s Prolonged Absence?
I’ve never lost a parent, so I can’t even begin to imagine what Stephon Marbury is going through right now.
The fact of the matter, though, is that Marbury hasn’t appeared on the basketball floor for more than three weeks since his father’s death, and has missed nine of the last twelve games.
The troubled point guard isn’t expected to play against Orlando tonight, and though the team says it’s an excused absence, there’s growing speculation that he’s not playing because he doesn’t want to suit up for coach Isiah Thomas.
A friend of Marbury told The Post yesterday, “Isiah will throw Steph under the bus any time the going gets tough.”
If there’s any truth to this - and again, we’re dealing with the NY Post here, so all bets are off - Marbury should just give up and return to the court.
Isiah Thomas isn’t going anywhere. If losing a sexual harassment case in the most humiliating way imaginable, a highly-publicized fan protest outside MSG, and an atrocious record won’t get him fired, an unpopular player refusing to return to the team surely won’t.
22 Responses to “Is There More to Marbury’s Prolonged Absence?”
Dec.26 at 1:09 pm
Bryan says:
:(
Dec.26 at 1:23 pm
Ken says:
Seriously, Isiah needs to go.
Dec.26 at 1:42 pm
Captain America says:
Hard to say, but Steph has encountered two losses in recent months. These losses are accumulative in terms of anxiety. It can cause an athlete to become despondent, detached and incapable of bringing necessary energy to his game. For the good of all concerned, he needs to reengage before too long.
Dec.26 at 1:57 pm
TY says:
Marbury is not a good player.He does not deserve to play in NBA along with man other players.
Dec.26 at 2:01 pm
Simone Lawy says:
But there’s nothing different with him on court or not….they’re still losing, aren’t my right ???
Dec.26 at 2:04 pm
Simone Lawy says:
buy him out and let him go……
Dec.26 at 2:26 pm
d.Y. says:
joyous kwanzaa! umoja!
Dec.26 at 2:38 pm
tack minor says:
Kwanzaa??? Do people actually celebrate that made-up ass holiday?
Dec.26 at 2:47 pm
d.Y. says:
yeah, it’s the only good holiday. all holidays are made up, often based on vile people who are now praised, and corrupted but thousands of years of peoples perspectives giving them little meaning other than a day off from work. kwanzaa is recently invented, and speaks to the modern need of rebuilding community. so yes, people celebrate it. Umoja, the first day of Kwanzaa stands for unity.
Dec.26 at 3:25 pm
Arty says:
I have lost both of my parents…Marbury is milking this for all it is worth. It simply shows selfishness. We all know our parents would want us to go out there and be the best we can be as soon a decent amount of respect was given to our deceased parents. Send him packing and get a real team player instead.
Dec.26 at 3:38 pm
Big L says:
I just can’t believe Skiles gets fired but Isaih gets to keep his job. Dolan is an idiot.
Dec.26 at 3:54 pm
Bxballer says:
Damn a lot of you guys sound real insensitive.
Dec.26 at 4:19 pm
thesubwayconnection says:
Wow. Huey Freeman, on the SLAM boards?! I’m honored.
Dec.26 at 4:58 pm
Chris O says:
I know they’re in a different world than we are, but have you ever heard of a person getting more than a week off of work to grieve the loss of a parent? This franchise continues to have its pants pulled down and its naked ass paddled in front of the world. Pathetic.
Dec.26 at 6:08 pm
J.B says:
c’mon dolan. just buy the boy out.
then give him a shot at playing alongside kg/double p and jesus in boston. now who’s gonna disagree with that?
Dec.26 at 8:08 pm
Jukai says:
Disagree Mutoni. If Starbury comes out and says “I’m not workin’ fo’ this asshole no more” than people might say “christ… if Marbury, who is a huge asshole, can’t stand Isiah, Isiah must be the biggest asshole ever” and fire him!
Dec.26 at 10:55 pm
Ben says:
If it was Agent 0 who had lost a parent he’d use the anger and frustration to fuel his game and have a career season…if he wasn’t injured.
Dec.27 at 11:18 am
jay says:
trade him to atlanta!!! get rid of him..he is terrible..isiah is terrible as a coach..they deserve eachother!!!!
Dec.27 at 12:55 pm
BETCATS says:
Ben: Agent Zero is sellfish and he would do the same thing to a lesser extent if he lost a parent
Dec.27 at 4:36 pm
Dub says:
I have never heard of somebody needing almost a whole month off to greive the loss of a parent. There must be something else going on or Marbury needs to accept the fact that life is what it is, grow up, be a man and get back to doing his job
Dec.27 at 9:10 pm
hursty says:
Chris O & Jukai, funny Sh!t, thats great. Jkidd to the knicks (for the whole team), than he can be with someone who understands his ‘issues’, Isiah and he can talk about their respective assault cases and how to make it as public as possible. then get MJ as the manager, that couldn’t be worse than right now? huh? oh…
Dec.28 at 6:47 am
Harlem_World says:
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again - RIP to Marbury Sr, but dying is as much a part of life as living. It happens to all of us. We all lose loved ones. The reality is we also need to carry on with life. Considering his role, his salary and his professional responsibility - the amount of time he has had off is unacceptable.