Amar’e Stoudemire said he will stay with his family for the next few days, grieving the death of his brother Hazell.
The All-Star forward will miss Wednesday’s game at Washington, but gave no clear timeline for his return or his availability for Friday against the Lakers or Saturday in Minnesota.
“I am humbled by all of the thoughts and prayers I have received. Thank you for all of the support,’’ Stoudemire said in a release. “I am going to take a few days to be with my family and grieve the loss of my big brother, Hazell Stoudemire. Although it is not clear to me now, I hope to make some good come from our tragedy.”
Asked earlier Tuesday at practice, coach Mike D’Antoni said he had not spoken directly with Stoudemire and had no clear idea when the latter would return.
“Thx for all of your thoughts & prayers for me and my family. I hope to make something good come from the tragic loss of my brother, Hazell,” Stoudemire tweeted earlier Tuesday.
A TMZ report claimed Stoudemire would miss the next three games after his brother was killed in a car accident Monday morning. It repeats the same quote provided by the Knicks, but cites “sources close to the basketball star” as saying he would miss three games.
Stoudemire’s agent, Happy Walters, said he had no new information, and more would be known “in the next couple of days.”