KNICK NOTES
CHICAGO – Eddy Curry heard boos during introductions and boos after he scored the game’s first bucket on a hook shot.
Curry racked up 24 points, making 10 of 15 baskets in a solid outing against his former team in his hometown. But there’s no love lost for Curry, who abandoned the Bulls and forced the sign-and-trade 14 months ago.
“I didn’t do anything to them,” Curry said. “Nothing I can do about it now. I come back here in the summer. Everyone shows me love. Whatever reasons, I come to United Center, they boo me. That’s OK.”
Fans remember Curry being relieved to get out of Chicago. “What am I supposed to say, I’m upset about [the sign-and-trade],” Curry said.
Curry even chuckled during the booing in pregame. But he was not in a good mood afterward, despite exposing the Bulls’ interior defense, as Ben Wallace doesn’t look like the same player. “It’s hard to say I did my part when you lose but I had a pretty decent game,” Curry said.
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Chicago native Isiah Thomas also got booed during intros. He was booed here as a player as well. Thomas visited his mother in Oakbrook, Ill., and relatives in his native West Side. “I tell everybody every day I’m from the west side of Chicago because anyone who made it from the west side we feel good about that,” Thomas said.
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Thomas and Stephon Marbury still haven’t spoken 1-on-,1 so Thomas sent more subliminal messages to his point guard through the media. Thomas explained what he wants out of a point guard. Thomas seemed to suggest that Marbury’s view on the game plan is being taken too literally. “Some nights you have to score a lot. Sometimes have to distribute,” Thomas said when asked what he needs from the point position. “It’s why it’s the toughest position in the league. Some games the first quarter you may have to score to keep the team in the game. Then the second quarter you may not have to take a shot. It’s always what’s necessary for the team to have.” The friction between Thomas and Marbury hasn’t disappeared since Saturday’s second-half benching.
