Believe it or not, Al Trautwig has an assignment that oozes desperation even more than “MSG Vault” (above). Scoffs the Daily News’ Bob Raissman, “They already found a formula to wreck what once was the crown jewel of regional sports cable networks. Now, they continue finding new, and unique, ways to destroy it.”
The Knicks’ pregame show is already in need of fixing. Whoever thinks compelling TV is having Trautwig do his thing in the Garden lobby is sadly mistaken.
Watching Wiggie, with all those yahoos behind him gesturing while talking on cell phones, is totally distracting.
“Yahoo” is an awfully harsh way to characterize Bobitto Garcia, don’t you think?
Congratulations to C Jerome James, who upon replacing the injured Eddy Current Suppression Ring on the Knicks active roster, brought the status of Stephon Marbury to a new low. It’s a quite a decline, from the Association’s No. 1 Point Guard (self-proclaimed) to Less Valuable Than Jerome James. The New York Times’ Howard Beck suggests Marbury — currently sans agent — could use some professional advice.
Marbury represented himself when he signed his last contract, a four-year, $76 million extension with the Phoenix Suns. That deal was consummated in October 2003, three months before the Suns traded him to the Knicks.Because the Suns offered Marbury the maximum allowed under N.B.A. rules, the talks were fairly simple.
œThere wasn™t no need for me to use an agent, Marbury said last week. œThere wasn™t no need for me to give somebody 4 percent or 3 percent of my money when I can go do the same thing that they would go do.
Asked if he needed an agent now, to help him find a new team, Marbury said: œI don™t want to go nowhere. I want to stay right here.
Money matters aside, Marbury needs representation for some practical reasons, said several agents, speaking anonymously because Marbury is not their client. The most basic reason is this: Teams that want to sign Marbury have no one to call to gauge his interest. A good agent would know which teams need a veteran point guard and what they are willing to pay. With the Knicks™ permission, the agent could solicit tentative offers before negotiating a buyout ” or even attempt to broker a trade.
Perhaps most critically, an agent could convince Marbury that accepting less money now is in his best interest because he can recoup the loss next summer as a free agent. In general, players are poor judges of their value, sometimes overestimating and sometimes underestimating it. Two agents invoked the adage that a man who represents himself has a fool for a client.
Beck makes an excellent point, and I remain hopeful Marbury can be persuaded to find a qualified agent. But who knows if Darren Heitner can find the time to take on new business?