Starbury Could Have Sent Two Kids To College

What a hoax!

The best point guard ever, as he will forever be referred to here, Stephon Marbury, aka Starbury, was fined more than $195,000 for skipping the Knicks game against the Phoenix Suns. For all that, he could have showed up and given the money to two kids to attend a good college or university. I figured I'd title this post to make Starbury look like a real bad guy. I saw an article entitled "Marbury Steals Candy from Babies and Kicks Old Ladies" earlier today, and thought to myself, "I could do better."

My guess was that the money was his proportionate to his salary for that game, and a little off the top as a fine, and - what do ya know - that is just what it turned out to be. Approximately $180,000, or 1/110th of his yearly salary, for missing a game without a reasonable excuse, per the league's collective bargaining agreement, and a $20,000 fine for skipping.

I guess "pissed off" doesn't qualify as a reasonable excuse. He is apparently appealing the fine. I swear new information comes out every half hour on this story.

THEN came reports that Isiah "Zeke" Thomas and Starbury had words on the team plane. Even possibly came to fisticuffs, but they're denying this. Now that's a fight I would pay to see. I know Zeke grew up on the rough streets of Chicago, but I don't know if he still has his jab.

What are these? Brass knuckles?

Starbury was heard in the back of the plane saying:

"Isiah has to start me," Marbury fumed, according to the source. "I've got so much (stuff) on Isiah and he knows it. He thinks he can (get) me. But I'll (get) him first. You have no idea what I know."

Ooh-ooh-ooh, threatening the coach. Who says that out loud? He has clearly been watching too much The Young & The Restless. He should be watching more One Life To Live and stop causing trouble in his.

And then had the nerve to show up for the Knicks game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Yup, much ado about nothing. The game just finished as I type, and he played 33 minutes (on the low end of the starters minutes) and had 13 points (4-12) and 4 assists. (Note: ESPN gets confused with the stats when the game ends - weren't they keeping them as the game went on?)

I guess he couldn't bear losing a half million(!) for two nights of work.

Another surprise (OK, not really), Steve Francis did something similar when he skipped the team plane to attend the Super Bowl . . . um. Not surprisingly, Stevie "Franchise" also played for the Knicks at one point in time (he is now a Houston Rocket - again).

But the bottom line is that Starbury tricked everyone and now he's back with the Knicks. Let's see how long this lasts . . . Any bets?

Screw You Guys. I'm Going Home.

It seems that the best point guard ever has decided that his days might be numbered with the New York Knicks.

Stephon Marbury better known as Starbury (or Another Overpaid Player on the Knicks Roster - AOPKR), was apparently told that he wasn't starting, which he took as a sign that it was time for him to go. Yes, instead of staying in Phoenix to play with the team, AOPKR Starbury decided to take the first plane back to BK (He's from there but even with gentrification, I doubt he still lives there), and perhaps bought his ticket off the Knicks team.

Now, this is not your typical day at the office. The boss tells you that you're not his go to guy or gal, you can't just go home. Plenty of people are getting benched every day. Imagine if they just decided to go home instead of staying at work.

Even better, imagine that you sent a text message to the New York Post saying, "The boss said I could go." He apparently has no plans of going to L.A. to play the Clippers, either.

And there you have Starbury's Tuesday afternoon. Knicks coach (if you don't know whose name is next, you must be new here, and if so, welcome - and click here to get caught up!) Isiah Thomas skirted the issue, and issued his own statement that said, in not so many words (read: Zeke speak), "Get your behind on this bench next to me, or else." If this isn't the end of his stay with Knicks, it really should be.

And "his" could refer to either of the two men mentioned here. Sure, Starbury's not the easiest guy to deal with, but it might just be time to make that change in the Big Apple. Starbury is owed another $42 million(!) over the next two seasons, so no team is going to want to trade for him unless they have some equally atrocious contract on their roster or just really (like really) need a change. That means that the Knicks could end up buying out his contract, which would likely make them the proud owners - again - of the highest paid player not playing the game.

One thing is for certain: If the Knicks underperform again this year, you better get your tickets now because this will be Isiah's last year coaching the Knicks.

The Greatest Point Guard Ever Makes the Best Witness . . . Ever

Zeke's trial, Day 2. (See here for Day 1).

Today, the humble Stephon Marbury testified. Um. Before I share his testimony, let me point out that Marbury is generally a good, generous guy. He gave a million to help Katrina victims. He gives away haircuts to kids in NY (his hometown). And with his Starbury line, he sells basketball sneakers for $14 sneakers (which can also buy you 3 pieces of lettuce at the U.S. Open). He claims he wore the shoes himself last season (check this review of them), and he apparently only gets paid on sales of the shoe, not to endorse it. This year, he's giving every high school varsity (no JV?) basketball player in NYC their own pair of Starbury sneakers. He even came out in support of Michael Vick (and backpedaled a bit). Perhaps a little conceited, or as this commenter states:

Stephon Marbury is a "five letter" word who is affectionately known in my "hood" as STEPHANY!!! (No disrespect intended to anyone named Stephany.) His act has never changed from Minnesota ("I deserve Garnett Money") to Jersey ("I'm all alone") to Phoenix (send him back) to New York ("I'm the greatest pg eva"). He's a "me" first point guard whose role should be reduced to Ball Boy! (No disrespect to any ball boys out there.) He'd be overpaid at that position as well, but at least he'd get his touches in every night and we wouldn't have to see him pouting on the the bench like the "five letter" word he's shown himself to be. His speed & agility would be better suited for getting Gatorade & towels for the real stars of this TEAM. The season is young but i think I.T.'s got something here. It's called a TEAM. Don't let Stephany ruin the start of something pretty good.

So he's not the most humble guy, nor maybe the most sane, but he is one of the most generous. In everything. Including giving TMI ("too much information"):

Nervous Knicks star Stephon Marbury took the stand today in the explosive $10 million sex-harassment suit that's rocking the Garden and admitted he lured one of the female accuser's subordinates into his car.

Marbury did not say explicitly they had sex as they sat parked outside a Manhattan strip joint, as fired Knick exec Anucha Browne Sanders has claimed.

"We got together right across the street," Marbury testified in Manhattan Federal court.

So he played a little chess in the car with interns. What's the big deal? Browne Sanders (I keep wanting to write "Brown Simpson") says that the subordinate, a college intern, told her that she had sex with Marbury because she felt like she had to. I don't really see what this has to do with whether Brown Sanders was sexually harassed by Isiah, and apparently neither did the judge, because he ceased all questioning with respect to his encounter(s). Then, in a stunning display of honesty:

Marbury admitted calling Browne Sanders a "b*tch" after she refused to give him more game tickets for his friends and family.

I have no words for this. I'm all for being honest, but gee whiz. After his testimony, he apparently went off laughing and singing to no one in particular, making fun of reporters . . . and still took the time to make a pitch for his new shoes. Hey, at least they're cheap.

Now I will say that I'm a little bit worried about Browne Sanders' case if the first person she put on the stand is Stephon Marbury. After all, he admitted that he thought this lawsuit was a joke when he heard about it. I am guessing that not even her attorney knew exactly what this guy was going to say. Maybe the point was to show that the Knicks organization is full of boorish men. But, unfortunately, just because your employers call you a b*tch doesn't mean you were sexually harassed, and being a general a**hole isn't illegal. But they do need to explain why they fired her if she kept receiving bonuses and raises.

Can't wait to see who's up for Day 3!