Knicks point guard Stephon Marbury bolted Phoenix in a huff this morning, leaving for home amid a feud with Isiah Thomas over his role on the team.
Marbury missed the morning shootaround and is not expected to play tonight when the Knicks being a four-game western trip against the Suns.
Thomas claimed he wasn’t sure if Marbury skipped town, but a source confirmed that he did.
“This is an in-house matter,” Thomas said. “He’s not here at shootaround. We hope he’s at the game. If not, make no mistake about it, we do want him as a member of this basketball team. He is welcome back, and we want him as a member of this team.”
Marbury’s abrupt departure could lead to the end of his Knicks career. He told The Post over the summer he planned to play in Italy in two years when his contract expires.
Thomas would not say if Marbury would be suspended or fined for this incident.
Thomas and Marbury spoke Monday about his role on the team and it appeared Thomas was set to reduce Marbury’s minutes, and possibly bring him off the bench, because of his defensive shortcomings.
“We need leadership in the organization and he’s capable of doing that, and we want him back,” Thomas said.
Marbury, who is off to a poor start on both ends of the court, is coming off a wild summer. He appeared to defend Michael Vick and dogfighting, and was a key witness in the Anucha Browne Sanders sexual harassment trial, when he admitted to having had sex in a truck with a Knicks intern.
Thomas said this morning he and Marbury also went through a spat last November after which they “kissed and made up.”
Marbury has told confidants he feels he’s best playing 40 minutes a night and would struggle in a non-starting role. The 30-year-old Brooklyn native has averaged 19.8 points per game in a 14-year career, the past five seasons with the Knicks.
He’s averaging 15.2 points, which would be a career low, for the Knicks this season in their 2-3 start.