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djsunyc
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Knicks Fall; Worse Yet, So Does an Injured Frye
By HOWARD BECK
Their present in tatters, the Knicks watched their future tumble into an awkward heap last night. So it seems the season can, in fact, get worse.
Channing Frye, the Knicks' top draft pick and their brightest prospect, injured his left knee early in the fourth quarter of a 114-109 loss to the Toronto Raptors at Madison Square Garden. Frye needed two people to help him off the court and was given an initial diagnosis of a sprained knee. X-rays were negative, but more tests are scheduled for today. Frye will not be with the team for tonight's game at Orlando.
It was as somber an image as the Knicks have endured all season, worse still than their 19-47 record. Frye, the eighth overall pick last June, is the one Knick considered unavailable in a trade — and the most coveted player on the roster. A gifted shooter and athlete, Frye is considered the franchise's greatest hope.
The cruelest part of the incident is that it was caused by the Knicks' other top rookie, Nate Robinson. Toronto's Andre Barrett had sped past Robinson into the lane. Robinson, in a desperate move, shoved him in the back. Barrett stumbled, and his left shoulder slammed into Frye's left knee. Frye collapsed on top of Barrett, and neither player immediately moved. On the bench, Malik Rose cringed and grabbed his own knee. It looked that bad.
Several minutes later, Frye got up and limped away, one arm draped over the shoulder of his teammate Jerome James and the other over the shoulder of Dr. Answorth Allen.
Frye had started the game in place of the injured Rose and had 19 points and 9 rebounds when he went down, with 9 minutes 36 seconds left.
It had already been a mildly chaotic day. Steve Francis gently aired his grievances at the morning shoot-around, bringing the Knicks' disgruntled-point-guard total to two. Francis, filling in for Quentin Richardson, wants to be a permanent starter. Last week, it was Stephon Marbury griping about his role, in a weeklong public spat with Coach Larry Brown.
While the Knicks' guards grumbled, Toronto's starting point guard, Mike James, carved them up. James, who will be a free agent after this season, scored 37 points (one shy of his career high), helping give the Knicks their fourth loss in six games. James made 12 of 22 shots, including 7 3-pointers. Chris Bosh added 31 points for Toronto. The Raptors (25-42) are 9-12 since trading Jalen Rose to the Knicks, who are 5-17 since the deal.
Francis had a point in the first half and finished with 10. Marbury had 14 points and 6 assists.
Francis, in the starting lineup for the fourth consecutive game, said that he intended to be there permanently next season, no matter who else is here.
That Francis would need to make such a statement is odd, given that Brown sung his praises when the Knicks traded for him last month. But Francis has spent most of his Knicks career on the bench, and will return there once Richardson is healthy. It is a situation Francis is tolerating, but not embracing.
"I don't plan on coming off the bench next year," Francis said after the morning shoot-around. "So, that's where I'm at." His tone was firm, not defiant or defensive. But his stance was absolute: If he is not starting here, he should be playing elsewhere.
"If it's a situation where they don't feel I'm a starting player on this team, I guess it will be good to go in a different direction, with no disrespect to either side," said Francis, who has started all but 10 games in his career.
"I think I'm basically going to be in the prime of my career the next couple of seasons, so I'm looking to take advantage of it."
Brown, leery of being drawn into another protracted debate with another of his star guards, deflected the issue. "Why should I worry about that now?" he said.
Brown has lavished praise on Richardson who, unlike Francis and Marbury, is a natural shooting guard. Despite pushing to acquire Francis, Brown seems unenthusiastic about the Marbury-Francis pairing.
"I'm happy he wants to start," Brown said of Francis. "That's why you have training camp. I would hope he's in a position to compete and earn the right to play. And the fact that he's willing to come off the bench now, he understands it's late in the season and we're just trying to figure out who can play and who will earn that right to start. I generally always figure that the players that deserve it end up putting themselves in position to start."
Asked if Francis had addressed the matter with him, Brown told reporters, "No, but I get a lot of my information from you guys."
REBOUNDS
Larry Brown, the assistant Mark Aguirre and Isiah Thomas, the team president, flew to Chicago to attend the funeral of Ray Meyer, the former DePaul coach. Brown and Aguirre missed the Knicks' morning shoot-around yesterday to make the trip. Aguirre, who played for Meyer at DePaul, stayed in Chicago but was expected to join the team today for its game at Orlando. ... Malik Rose was placed on the inactive list because of a sprained right ankle and is listed as day to day. Maurice Taylor replaced Rose on the roster. Channing Frye started in place of Rose, forming the Knicks' 38th different starting lineup of the season. ... Quentin Richardson (sprained thumb) will probably not return to the lineup until Friday, Brown said.
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3/22/2006 1:10 AM
