BOSTON – When Jamal Crawford informed Stephon Marbury on Tuesday morning Crawford was out for the season, the Knicks point guard thought the combo guard was joking. When Marbury realized Crawford was serious, Marbury broke down and cried for more than a minute, according to a team source.
Marbury and Crawford have created a special bond across the past three seasons, a backcourt chemistry that finally had given the Knicks a real shot at a playoff berth.
Seeing Marbury distraught in the locker room at the team’s Westchester facility, Isiah Thomas moved to shake him out of it, telling him about the old Boston Garden and the sign that read, “We Won’t Be Denied.” Thomas later reiterated that mantra to the media that afternoon.
Yesterday, at the team’s morning shootaround before their 102-94 loss to the Celtics, Thomas said of Marbury, “They’re really close. The way Steph has been playing, the way he’s bought into the team, for a brief moment, he probably thought things were slipping away. We slapped him pretty hard and told him to snap out of it. It’ll be all right.”
Marbury said of his initial reaction to Crawford’s season-ending stress fracture: “I was shocked. I thought he was playing at first.
“It hit me hard because of everything that’s going on, as far as making the playoffs and just for him, because of how much he’s grown since he’s been here,” Marbury added. “It’s been an uphill battle for him and finally he got to this point and has an understanding of what he can do on the basketball court. It’s tough to see a young player go through that.”
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Steve Francis stayed in New York yesterday for an MRI exam that showed no structural damage to his knee. After saying he may be done for the season, Francis told his agent, Jeff Fried, he will return to practice today. . . . David Lee (ankle sprain) expects to be back tomorrow vs. Golden State.