Tweet on, J.R.!
J.R. Smith said he is free to keep using Twitter and he will. Coach Mike Woodson said his threat of shutting down Smith’s account was just that — a threat he is not going to go through with.
Smith, despite being fined twice in 20 months for inappropriate tweets, isn’t going to shut himself down.
“I’m not going to do that, I just got to be better at policing myself,’’ Smith said Saturday night before the Knicks hosted the Hawks.
Smith was fined $25,000 Friday by the NBA for responding to Pistons point guard Brandon Jennings’ tweet that insulted his brother, Chris Smith, who was activated Saturday for the first time because of Metta World Peace’s sore left knee.
Smith wrote he would send “his street homies’’ to Detroit.
“He just got to clean up,’’ Woodson said. “He’s got to let things roll off his back. Let it go and concentrate on playing.”
Asked if he banned Smith from Twitter, Woodson said, “There’s nothing I can do about that. I can’t take that away from him. I don’t have the right to do that.’’
Asked about the meeting, Smith said Woodson gave him “the right message — just about me doing the right thing.’’
Smith said on Friday he didn’t believe what he did merited a fine, especially since he deleted the message quickly.
Asked if Jennings broke a code by knocking a player, Smith said, “There’s no loyalty in this game. There’s no player- to-player loyalty, no loyalty to teams, no loyalty to anything in this game. I expect there should be that but there isn’t.’’’
“I don’t know what to be surprised about anymore, honestly,’’ Smith said.
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Kenyon Martin no longer will rotate games, according to a source. His platoon with Amar’e Stoudemire officially is over — at least on Martin’s end. Stoudemire may continue to play every other game for the time being, though Woodson hasn’t been clear.
A new firm arrangement is in place where Martin has been cleared by the medical staff to play every game — unless his ankles are hurting, according to sources.
Martin has chronic ankle issues and suffered swelling late in the season and during the playoffs.
According to a source, Knicks president Steve Mills got involved in the decision after Martin met with Woodson. Martin expressed frustration over the vagueness of the arrangement and appeared upset at not getting to play in the San Antonio rout last Sunday.
Martin, however, is not unhappy with the Knicks — just the now-lifted restrictions. Martin played in the Atlanta-Houston back-to-back and was to play his third straight game Saturday night against Atlanta.
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Happy Walters, agent for on-the-trading-block Iman Shumpert and restricted Stoudemire, wrote on Twitter Saturday. “Lets stop talkin’ bout trade rumors & players w/ ‘limited minutes’. Allow Woody and team 2 blend & come back from injuries b/f panicking.’’ … Former Knicks president Donnie Walsh will be honored Tuesday, a day before the Pacers-Knicks game at the Garden. Fordham Prep, where the Bronx-born Walsh starred, is renaming its basketball court after Walsh, who is now a Pacers advisor. Walsh said he will be in attendance. Walsh graduated from Fordham Prep in 1958, averaging 25 points per game.
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Metta World Peace sat out with a nagging left-knee soreness but his brother Daniel raised mystery when he tweeted, “Ron isn’t hurt but Ron isn’t playing tonight. I know why but I won’t say.’’ Daniel took the tweet down soon after and submitted, “Chill, it was a joke.’’ World Peace was seen on the trainer’s table before game.