The publicity stunt that was Allan Houston’s comeback with the Knicks is over, lasting one week, one game and six minutes.
Houston, realizing the Knicks had to concentrate on formulating their nine- or 10-man rotation rather than seeing if he can catch lightning in a bottle, did the Knicks a great favor and asked to be waived Thursday, according to sources.
Houston’s disasterous six-minute stint in Boston on Wednesday night proved he needed a lot more time than the Knicks had to give. According to a source, Houston told his wife Thursday afternoon he was done with the Knicks, then informed coach/president Isiah Thomas hours later before the game against the Nets, for which Houston did not dress.
On Houston’s request, the Knicks did not announce the decision until yesterday, before their open practice at Hofstra. Thomas planned on cutting Houston at the end of preseason.
According to an individual who spoke to Houston, the former All-Star guard has left open the door of joining another team in-season, but feels he’s not in good enough game shape to do so imminently.
“While my body and my knees, in particular, feel fine, I know what is required for me to be truly effective in the NBA again and it involves a timing and progression that would not be fair to Isiah and the Knicks right now,” Houston said in a statement. “With the season opening less than two weeks away, I think it is best for the team to move on without me.”
Indeed it is. With the Knicks offering Houston an open invite to camp, this looks partly like a publicity stunt to take the glare off Thomas’ sexual harassment trial. Houston also had to realize he had no shot of making the overstocked roster.
That Houston missed the first nine days of camp and the two-a-days in Charleston, S.C., was an indicator he wasn’t serious about making the team.
The Knicks are in desperation mode after depressing preseason defeats to the Celtics and Nets, and have three games left before the regular season.
“We want to really get into the meat of what we’re doing,” Thomas said. “From an evaluation standpoint, there won’t be a whole lot of play for the 14th and 15th guy. We’ve got to get into who’s going to be our ninth and 10th man.”
Houston was slow on defense in Boston, missed both his shots, and struggled to get open.
“It’s different from playing five days as opposed to playing for five months,” Stephon Marbury said. “The decision he made shows he’s not ready to do that.”
At least not now.
“He looked good, but he definitely wasn’t the old Allan Houston,” Eddy Curry said.
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Jerome James, trying to postpone knee surgery, competed in a scrimmage for first time.
“He’s able to go out one day, then the next day is a lot of pain,” Curry said. “It’s how he bounces back. The real test is (today).”