The New York Knicks needed Stephon Marbury to play, then suspended him a game and docked him nearly $400,000 in salary yesterday after saying he refused.
The disgruntled guard insists he never told coach Mike D'Antoni "no" and plans to appeal.
D'Antoni wouldn't go into specifics of their conversation that took place before Wednesday's loss in Detroit, though he made it clear he asked the point guard to play because the Knicks were short-handed.
Marbury will not be paid when he sits out tonight's home game against the Golden State Warriors and will lose an additional game's pay for Wednesday's actions. He earns approximately $21 million in salary this year, drawing about $190,000 a game.
Marbury told NBC in an interview that there wasn't a jersey in his locker in Detroit and he was "shocked" he was "suspended for no reason."
Marbury said he and D'Antoni spoke Wednesday morning and "basically went our separate ways."
"I never told him I was not going to play," Marbury said. "That's basically why I'm getting suspended. If I were to have said I'm not going to play, that's an automatic suspension, which I basically got suspended anyway."
The players association plans to file a grievance on Marbury's behalf.
Cavaliers: : LeBron James reacted strongly to Charles Barkley's comments that he isn't showing respect for Cleveland fans and his teammates by discussing his possible free agency after the 2010 season. "He's stupid. That's all I've got to say about that," James said. "If I was LeBron James, I would shut ... up," the Hall of Famer said on Dan Patrick's radio show. "I'm a big LeBron fan. ... I'm getting so annoyed he's talking about what he's going to do in two years. I think it's disrespectful to the game. I think it's disrespectful to the Cavaliers."
Last night's games
Heat 107, Suns 92: : Dwyane Wade scored a season-high 43 points, and visiting Miami beat Phoenix in the first matchup between the teams since the Shaquille O'Neal-for-Shawn Marion blockbuster trade in February. O'Neal and Marion weren't big factors in the game dominated by the unstoppable Wade. O'Neal scored 12 points and Marion had 10. The Suns played without the injured Steve Nash (thigh).
