The phrase "shuffling deck chairs on the Titantic" would be an apt response to Mike D'Antoni's apparent decision to return Chris Duhon to the starting lineup after two games with Nate Robinson running the show.
It would be an apt response, that is, if the Titanic was a broken down dinghy that no one had expected to make it across the Atlantic in the first place.
It was supposed to be unsinkable, though, and no one has mistaken the Knicks for a good team for quite some time. Whether Duhon starts or comes off the bench or sells popcorn at the Madison Square Garden concession stands, it's all packaging for the same mediocre product that the team has been hawking all season long.
We've been harsh critics of Duhon's play in these parts all season, but it's hard to come up with a rebuke of D'Antoni's choice that comes down to anything more than the bitterness borne of many years in the basketball wilderness.
The truth is that the coach is only going to be as good as his personnel and the two Knicks losses this weekend underscore just how lacking they are in that department. On Friday night, Brandon Jennings, the point guard they could have had, torched them for 19 points in the second half of a Bucks victory. On Saturday night it was all about LeBron James, the player that may never come to the Garden, and a strong comeback effort fell short against his singular skills.
The Knicks chose hope over team building, a decision that may still prove Andy Dufresne right about hope being the best of things. But just like those days at Shawshank, it is hard to watch the indignities of this Knicks team on a regular basis.
Making choices between Duhon and Robinson at point guard is like choosing between drinking arsenic and hemlock. It's just a matter of taste that leads to the same ugly result either way.
Sports
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com.
