Knicks' D'Antoni gives Duhon vote of confidence
Photo credit: Jason DeCrow | Chris Duhon drives against Philadelphia 76ers Louis Williams. (Oct. 13, 2009)
GREENBURGH, N.Y. - There are a lot of people who aren't sure that Chris Duhon should be a starter for the Knicks. But the only person who matters, coach Mike D'Antoni, is not one of them.
"Duhon is my point guard," D'Antoni said Thursday, the day after Duhon went scoreless in the Knicks' fifth straight defeat. "He is in a funk. We have to get him out of it."
In the 114-101 loss to the Hawks Wednesday night at the Garden, Duhon was 0-for-6 with three turnovers in 24 minutes. It was the second time in the last three games he has not scored. He is shooting 23.6 percent and averaging 6.7 points.
"You just have to play through it," Duhon said. "I know how important I am to this team. I know when I play well how good we can play. It's disappointing. You kind of feel like you're letting your guys down, your coach down and letting the fans down."
In all fairness, Duhon is not the only Knick in a funk. The team is 1-8, equaling a 2002-03 franchise record for worst nine-game start. Yet Duhon's struggles may be more pronounced because at the same time he is floundering, rookie point guard Toney Douglas has been impressive. Douglas made his first start Wednesday, opposite Duhon, and scored a career-high 23 points. Over his last three games, Douglas is averaging 20 points, but he had only one assist in each of those games.
"Being a point guard and being a contributor are different," D'Antoni said before adding that Douglas has been playing very well for a rookie.
The guard situation could become even more muddled tonight if Nate Robinson returns after missing six games with a sprained right ankle.
It's no surprise that D'Antoni would be firmly in Duhon's corner. He was the one who convinced general manager Donnie Walsh in the summer of 2008 to sign him to a two-year contract because he believed he was the player who could run the team until they got to the summer of 2010. (The Knicks are owned by Cablevision, which also owns Newsday.)
It looks as if D'Antoni still believes in Duhon, despite his problems.
"I'm not shedding or throwing people overboard,'' D'Antoni said. "We're just hanging in there and seeing what we can do."
Notes & quotes: Walsh was asked after practice if he was concerned that the season was starting to get away from the team. "I don't like losing games,'' he said. "I come here to practice every day because I know we have to get better to win games. I don't have time for concern. I think if we keep doing the right things, we can turn this around and make it a better season. There's no one in the franchise happy that we have won one game." . . . Eddy Curry went through his first full-contact practice. He is still expected to play his first game next week.
