The Larry Hughes-Mike D'Antoni feud got more bizarre yesterday as Hughes missed at least the final stages of the Knicks' practice -- while there was mystery as to whether he practiced at all.
When two reporters and a camera crew were let into the Westchester gym an hour into practice, Hughes -- furious he's been dropped from the rotation -- was nowhere to be found.
All the Knicks were on the court, doing their shooting, except for Hughes and injured Eddy Curry. The team remained shooting for another 35 minutes.
A Knicks spokesman claimed Hughes left the court to take a "bathroom break" but that he never returned to rejoin his teammates.
Though D'Antoni said Hughes had practiced earlier, Knicks president Donnie Walsh, who watched the session, made a remark that raised eyebrows.
When asked if he had spoken to Hughes yesterday, Walsh said, "I didn't see Larry today."
Then Walsh rephrased the remark, saying, "I mean I saw him but I didn't speak to him."
Sources have indicated some players are disappointed in Hughes for voicing his displeasure to the media and thinking about himself over the team. Hughes has an expiring contract.
The Knicks (16-24) enter the season's midpoint today in turmoil. They play an MLK Day matinee versus the Pistons at the Garden after losing four of their last five games.
After the Knicks lost to the Pistons on Saturday night, Hughes said of D'Antoni's rotation, "It's a joke. A joke."
Hughes played for the first time Saturday after a seven-game absence, but lasted just nine minutes. He was given no warning by D'Antoni he was playing that night.
Before the game, Hughes revealed his meeting with Walsh on Thursday to complain about his status. It does not appear Hughes and the coach are on speaking terms.
When asked about Hughes' "joke" remark, D'Antoni tried to make light of it, but did so with a sharp edge.
"It's not really funny," D'Antoni said. "I didn't catch the punch line. Everybody has their self-defense mechanisms. He's in a tough situation. But I got to try to do what I got to do."
Walsh said Thursday's meeting with Hughes was unrelated to Hughes playing versus the Pistons. Hughes is the team's highest-paid player at $14 million.
"I want to make it very clear," Walsh said. "I'm not telling Coach to play anybody. You can't come to me and therefore you get playing time."
Hughes has felt disrespected because D'Antoni hasn't talked to him on why he got demoted Jan. 1. Walsh said it is Hughes' job to initiate.
"All he has to do is walk up to [D'Antoni] and ask him," Walsh said. "The player should go to the coach."
Curry, Darko Milicic and Nate Robinson also have expressed similar frustration with D'Antoni's scarce feedback on their demotions.
Hughes' return to the rotation, during which he missed all four of his shots, could be fleeting. He didn't play in the second half, which also bothered Hughes. Hughes took the spot normally given to Jonathan Bender, who was a DNP.
Creating further flux is that Jordan Hill's stock is on the rise. The coaching staff in the last week had been contemplating giving him meaningful minutes to get more length on defense at power forward. The coaches have been disappointed in Al Harrington's D.
Forty games into the season, D'Antoni doesn't know who's playing today.
"I'll play the guys I think are ready that day or that moment," D'Antoni said. "I don't know what, day-to-day that will be."
But Hill looks to have made the rookie breakthrough Saturday as he was on the court in the fourth quarter when the Knicks made their comeback, cutting a 20-point deficit to two.
"I hope so for him," Walsh said. "He's been really lively. He had a nice stint where it helped us. I hope it encourages him and he gets more time. The last month, he's worked very hard."
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