The Garden Media Mess Continues

The Knicks and Cablevision continue to heap dishonor on their brands with the latest sad chapter of the Isiah Thomas era. Fans must be scratching their head wondering what insanity will come down from Garden Management next.

Yesterday, Stephon Marbury left the team and text messaged that he had the permission of team coach and GM Thomas to do so.

Today, we find that Marbury has been fined $182,000+ for leaving the team.

According to the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement, players are docked 1/110th of their salaries for a missed game. With Marbury scheduled to earn $20.1 million this season, that would be about $182,800.

Marbury told the New York Post on Tuesday he had permission from Thomas, also the Knicks president, to leave the team, but Thomas would not confirm that. He did say the team would welcome back Marbury.

Thomas refused to discuss any potential penalties against Marbury before the game on Tuesday, saying the matter would be kept “in-house.”

If he had permission, why did he get fined? Did Marbury lie? And didn't he and Thomas and the Garden know that someone would find out that someone wasn't telling the truth?

More to the point, why are Thomas and the Garden screwing with the media on a daily basis over what is going on? They couldn't give a straight story and instead lied about what was going on. No comment would have been more suitable than the clown act that passes as Garden Management these days.

Someone isn't telling the truth and someone at the Garden really ought to learn how to deal with the media better. Cablevision is a media company, and yet it doing everything imaginable to destroy its branding. Knick fans have to scratch their heads over what is happening to the team less than two weeks into the season. They're waiting for the other shoe to drop.