Nate Robinson's frustration with his benching is well-documented, although Nate himself has yet to vocally object, instead leaving his agent to make the statements. Nate's not the only one feeling a little grumpy. Eddy Curry's been a DNP-CD for the last four outings, and is getting all kinds of disgruntled. From Marc Berman:
"It's frustrating, because I worked so hard to get back and to be ready to go and now it's just like go every game trying to figure out if I'm going to play or not, sitting over there waiting to see what's going to happen," Curry said. "It's tough to deal with, especially at this stage of my career, at this age. I ain't that old, but I've been here for a while."
Curry's skipped the middleman entirely, and is instead taking the direct route. While Eddy's disappointment is perfectly understandable, there are a few circumstances that distinguish this case from that of Robinson. One is that Curry has played more recently, and has actually received minutes within the span of this winning December. In fact, the Knicks are 1-2 in December when Curry has played, and many of us felt that Eddy's minutes marked a downward turning point in the Knicks-Bulls game that went sour. His presence just might not fit into the Knicks' offense, as his abilities to make quick decisions and pass when doubled are questionable. It's really superb to see him back in shape, but Eddy Curry's strengths don't seem to fit the gameplan. While there have been moments at which many of us have said "the Knicks could really use Nate right now", the same can't really be said for Eddy. This was to be expected. D'Antoniball values speed over comfort, and Curry at any size isn't exactly nimble.
Curry is also not an expiring contract, so his current activity is slightly less crucial in the scheme of getting a new deal in the NBA. All that said, Eddy's right that if the Knicks don't plan on playing him, they might as well look into moving him, which I'm sure they are. Curry has every right to be disappointed, but unlike Nate, it's hard to imagine an alternative to the current scenario.
For more, check out Dan's take. He's of the opinion that Curry's failure to stay in shape during his Knick career undermines any sense of entitlement he might feel. And you know what? As much as I know Eddy's heart is in the right place, that's a fair point.