STEPHON Marbury still couldn’t extend his left hand yesterday, leaving Larry Brown with one tied behind his back.

Option No. 1 at backup point guard, Jamal Crawford, is really a two. Option No. 2, Nate Robinson, is also a two. Option No. 3 turned into Trevor Ariza, so not surprisingly last night’s game with the Hornets turned into 27 points, 13 assists, 14-for-17 free throw shooting for the probable NBA Rookie of the Year, Chris Paul, and the Knicks’ fifth straight loss, 109-98.

Thus, all but one of the six consecutive wins that engendered hope has been effectively canceled out, just not yet the season. Marbury should return Wednesday, for upward of another 280 straight starts, or at least the Knicks better hope.

Paul was stripped by Crawford for one first-quarter solo, got knocked to the floor by both Jerome James and Ariza in the final minutes before the half. He then took over after the intermission, when the Hornets led by as many as 20. “He is as good as has come into our league in a long time,” said Brown.

The show made an increasingly beaten-down Garden crowd pine for Marbury, who, of course, is not a one-guard either, but was masquerading as one with increased effectiveness until Monday, when Wally Szczerbiak didn’t tighten up his shoulders quite to Stephon’s exacting code.

With that, whatever hard-earned momentum that had finally come to the Knicks dissipated, not coincidentally, along with most of their ball distribution, and some of their effort.

Crawford had 14 points and only three assists last night in 40 minutes. In 17 minutes largely against Speedy Claxton, Robinson collected a strip of Kirk Snyder, an explosive drive down the baseline, three fouls and one stern lecture from Brown for not looking at the clock before hurrying the last shot of the first quarter.

“When we got Nate into foul trouble so soon, that hurt us,” said Brown. “You really need to have his ability to run with quickness. They just did a great job of controlling the tempo and finding open people. We had far too many turnovers.”

Six of them were by Crawford, who was put on this earth to come off the bench making shots. Robinson was born to, well, probably not play basketball for a long time in the NBA at 5-foot-9, unless he learns to eventually play the point. All the undersized persons who have lasted – Muggsy Bogues, Spud Webb, Earl Boykins – were point guards, which Robinson was not at Rainier Beach High and the University of Washington.

“This is an opportunity to learn so he’ll be able to play back there when necessary,” said Brown. “I think Nate sees a lot on the floor, but it wouldn’t be fair to put him back there now.”

Obviously not, with Robinson’s 45 percent from outside the arc, accompanied by practically a 1-1 turnover-to-assist ratio. He can penetrate, shoot and lift you out of your seat, but then so would a fall from a flying trapeze.

Besides, it’s not prematurely selling Robinson short to suggest that Isiah Thomas planned badly. One of the game’s best-ever point guards left himself short at the position – hard to fathom.

Thomas did take an offseason run at free-agent Steve Blake, who left Washington for Portland. But both out of comfort in Marbury’s durability and out of the panic that the Knicks would be left with no big man, the mid-level cap exception went entirely to Jerome James, who, let’s just say, has plenty of room and time to grow on us over a ridiculous five-year commitment.

There were backup point guards out there last summer, will be again this summer. Until Robinson brain catches up to his feet and proves he can defend, he will be a burst guy off the bench – not that there is anything wrong with that, except when the Knicks are without Marbury and losers of five straight.

jay.greenberg@nypost.com

Point taken

Rookie Nate Robinson has stepped in to start at point guard with Knicks All-Star Stephon Marbury out with an injury. Here’s how Robinson’s stats over two games stack up against Marbury’s averages for the season:

Marbury Robinson

39.4 MIN 29

6.6 FGM 5.5

14.7 FGA 14.0

.448 FG% .393

0.4 3ptM 0.5

1.7 3ptA 1.0

.246 3pt% .500

5.3 FTM 8.0

6.8 FTA 8.0

.776 FT% 1.000

3.3 REB 2.0

7.0 AST 2.5

1.3 STL 1.0

2.8 TO 6.0

18.9 PTS 13.5