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Brown challenges Marbury's desire for freedom
Larry Brown didn't mind a little Philadelphia freedom, but things are different in New York. The Knicks coach pounded away at Stephon Marbury, who has said in recent days that he plans to return to a free-wheeling style of play and wants more freedom on the court.
"We're 17 and 45. You want to say because we don't have freedom that's why we're losing?" Brown said. "That's fine, you can say that all you want. But the reality is, we foul more than any team in the league; since the fifth week of the season we're the second-worst field-goal percentage defensive team in the league; we turn the ball over more than any team in the league; we're close to the fewest blocked shots of any team in the league.
"Now you want freedom? How are you gonna have freedom with those stats?"
On Saturday, Marbury said changing his play hadn't helped the team.
"I went into this year trying to do something, to put myself in a situation where we can win, OK?" Marbury was quoted as saying. "To help the team win games. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. So, what do I do now, as far as the way I play? I go back to playing like Stephon Marbury, aka Starbury. I haven't been Starbury this year. I've been some other dude this year."
He followed that up with more discontent this week. Brown's response Tuesday: "That means, 'I ain't thinking about all those things that really are relevant. I ain't thinking about any of those things.' "
The coach also attacked comparisons between how he handled Allen Iverson while coach of the 76ers and how he's handling Marbury.
"[Iverson] came to every game trying to win, as hard as he possibly could," Brown said. "Played hurt, broken down, competed every single night, and we had a team around him that accepted what he could do. And they all knew that every single night he's trying to win the game. ... He competed every single minute of every game."
The relationship between Brown and Marbury has been closely watched since Brown became the Knicks coach last summer. Marbury is a point guard who prefers to score, and Brown has been demanding on point guards throughout his career. There were doubts the two could get along, and that gulf has widened this week.
"I've been coaching how many years? A long time," Brown said. "I never left a team in worse shape than I got it. Not once. Now think about that. Think about me and think about the guy who's talking. All right? I've never asked anything of my players any different than I'm doing right now. Think about that.
"The bottom line is, I want us to rebound, defend, share the ball, play hard. That's all. Now if you can't do that, if that's not important enough to you, it's not on me." Marbury's average of 17.2 points going into Wednesday was his lowest since he scored 15.8 per game as a rookie with Minnesota in 1996-97.
Brown challenges Marbury's desire for freedom
Larry Brown didn't mind a little Philadelphia freedom, but things are different in New York. The Knicks coach pounded away at Stephon Marbury, who has said in recent days that he plans to return to a free-wheeling style of play and wants more freedom on the court.
"We're 17 and 45. You want to say because we don't have freedom that's why we're losing?" Brown said. "That's fine, you can say that all you want. But the reality is, we foul more than any team in the league; since the fifth week of the season we're the second-worst field-goal percentage defensive team in the league; we turn the ball over more than any team in the league; we're close to the fewest blocked shots of any team in the league.
"Now you want freedom? How are you gonna have freedom with those stats?"
On Saturday, Marbury said changing his play hadn't helped the team.
"I went into this year trying to do something, to put myself in a situation where we can win, OK?" Marbury was quoted as saying. "To help the team win games. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. So, what do I do now, as far as the way I play? I go back to playing like Stephon Marbury, aka Starbury. I haven't been Starbury this year. I've been some other dude this year."
He followed that up with more discontent this week. Brown's response Tuesday: "That means, 'I ain't thinking about all those things that really are relevant. I ain't thinking about any of those things.' "
The coach also attacked comparisons between how he handled Allen Iverson while coach of the 76ers and how he's handling Marbury.
"[Iverson] came to every game trying to win, as hard as he possibly could," Brown said. "Played hurt, broken down, competed every single night, and we had a team around him that accepted what he could do. And they all knew that every single night he's trying to win the game. ... He competed every single minute of every game."
The relationship between Brown and Marbury has been closely watched since Brown became the Knicks coach last summer. Marbury is a point guard who prefers to score, and Brown has been demanding on point guards throughout his career. There were doubts the two could get along, and that gulf has widened this week.
"I've been coaching how many years? A long time," Brown said. "I never left a team in worse shape than I got it. Not once. Now think about that. Think about me and think about the guy who's talking. All right? I've never asked anything of my players any different than I'm doing right now. Think about that.
"The bottom line is, I want us to rebound, defend, share the ball, play hard. That's all. Now if you can't do that, if that's not important enough to you, it's not on me." Marbury's average of 17.2 points going into Wednesday was his lowest since he scored 15.8 per game as a rookie with Minnesota in 1996-97.
