With Stephon Marbury’s Knicks visiting younger cousin’s Sebastian Telfair’s Blazers later tonight, both the NY Post’s Marc Berman and the Daily News’ Frank Isola chased the former for comments about the alleged feud between their families, as chronicled in Ian O’Connor’s recent Telfair biography, “Jump”.
From Berman’s article :
Asked if he was hurt by the book, Marbury said, “No. I know they just don’t know better. I don’t get mad at ignorance. How could you get mad at someone for not knowing that two plus two is four. I know how they think. Now they’re seeing and understanding what it’s about. You can’t satisfy everyone. It’s impossible.”
The book also details a well-known tale in which Marbury and Telfair went 1-on-1 on the project playgrounds a few years ago before a sizeable crowd. It was a physical battle in which they traded hurtful insults and Telfair schooled his older cousin.
When asked about the playground duel, Telfair (above) got angry, saying yesterday, “It was a basketball game we played against each other. You’re not going to get me saying something that will come between our family.”
Marbury believes the Telfairs have changed their tune since Sebastian turned pro. Marbury has a big family and supports his wife, kids, mother, father, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews.
“It’s hard because everybody wants something,” Marbury said. “We knew they’d do a 360. It’s new to them. But we’ve been going through the last nine years and we know what it’s about.”
Marbury claims his family is unfazed. “We don’t, especially against family, hold grudges like that,” he said.
Marbury says he does counsel Telfair. “I speak to my cousin,” Marbury said. “I know he was young and he was being manipulated by someone trying to make money. That’s all [author] Ian O’Connor was doing. I totally think he took advantage.”
re: “I totally think he took advantage.â€
Obviously, Stephon has been reading “The Journalist and the Murderer,” by Janet Malcolm. But it’s kind of moving to hear Steph be so level headed in speaking of how difficult it is to draw the line between close family to whom you are going to dole out cash, and those who do not make the cash cut. I still recall Steph’s younger and less talented brother, Zack, when he tried out for the Westchester Wildfire a few years ago; before the game he was resplendent in new gear, and his bald head was the exact same shape as Stephon. But when he started to play, the swagger diminished slightly, he was much less talented a ballplayer, and it struck me that in a weird way it must be difficult to be so obviously on the gravy train of a more talented sybling.
What exactly are you trying to say?
Frank:
Steph’s comments were interesting is what I was trying to say. The whole dynamic between athletes and journalists is, in the right hands, interesting. Steph is an interesting pair of hands. So is:
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