Nate Robinson's stay in the doghouse has been a troublesome issue for a few weeks now. The Knicks' 5-3 record in his absence is worth something, but some of us have questioned Mike D'Antoni's intentions during stretches when Nate's presence was clearly missed. The benching has some wondering if D'Antoni might have some personal beef with Robinson, and if the benching will ever be lifted. One of those people is Nate's agent, Aaron Goodwin. From Howard Beck of the New York Times:
"I want to do what I can to get Nate out of New York," Goodwin said in a telephone interview Saturday afternoon. "There’s no reason to allow this kid’s career to get rotted by what’s going on here in New York."
If you click through and read the rest of Goodwin's words, I think you'll find that he's being pretty reasonable. Robinson is in a crucial contract year, and if he's willing and able, it's best for the Knicks to either make use of his services or facilitate his departure. Donnie Walsh, for his part, seems to get it:
"I understand the situation that Nate is in the last year and he has to play," Walsh said in a telephone interview, "so if that’s the option that he wants to pursue, I told him I’ll talk about it."
Walsh said he wanted to see "if this can be straightened out" before deciding whether to pursue a trade. But it appears that D’Antoni has no intention of playing Robinson again. He left him on the bench Thursday and Friday, despite the absence of Larry Hughes, who was resting a strained groin muscle.
I'm a Robinson fan and would love to see D'Antoni give him another shot after this extended absence. So does my mom, who just read the news somewhere, then scurried upstairs and yelled "but he's my favorite!". If the various parties can't align themselves, though, Nate Robinson should be dealt. Then again, Goodwin's making these feelings so public doesn't exactly help the Knicks' chances of trading Robinson at a fair price. Oh well. Any takers?