Robinson Out as Knicks' Starting PG

• By: Charlie Zegers
• On: 2/8/2010 2:18:00 PM

Related: Charlie Zegers New York Knicks NBA 



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Mike D'Antoni has announced that Nate Robinson is out as the Knicks' starting point guard, and that Chris Duhon will be back in that role when New York hosts the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night. The "Robinson as starter" experiment lasted two games -- back-to-back losses to the Bucks and Cavs on Friday and Saturday.

It would be unfair to pin either loss on Robinson, who scored 13 points (nine in the first quarter) and handed out seven assists against the Bucks and a team-high 26 points with six dimes -- and a block of Shaquille O'Neal -- against the LeBrons. (Besides, you didn't really think the Knicks had a chance in Cleveland, did you?) It's worth noting that the Knicks' late charge in Saturday's game -- which trimmed Cleveland's 23-point lead to just 3 -- featured a heavy dose of Robinson playing off the ball, alongside Duhon. And it seems that's an alignment D'Antoni plans on using more often.

Of course, having Robinson trade places with Duhon again still leaves the Knicks with players out of position. Wilson Chandler is likely to get the nod at shooting guard, though he's really a forward. The fact that he's playing out-of-position at the two makes having a play-maker at the point non-negotiable. Robinson might make more sense at the point if Larry Hughes -- a decent passer -- was getting more minutes, but Hughes and D'Antoni haven't seen eye-to-eye in months.

The biggest beneficiary of this latest shift could be Danilo Gallinari. One of D'Antoni's biggest reasons for making this change is the hope that Duhon can get Gallo more involved from the opening tip on.

It also re-affirms Duhon's position as an option for teams in need of assists. His shot hasn't been falling since Christmas, which has really hurt his overall fantasy standing. But he should continue to generate enough dimes (eight in the Cleveland game) to be worthwhile as a category specialist -- and because his shooting has been so bad, he's available in lots of leagues.