"Not that the Knicks were loaded at point guard to start with, but with Iman Shumpert out, they are now dangerously thin at the position. Even so, don't expect Nate Robinson to make a triumphant return to his former team.

"We'll look into it," Mike D'Antoni said.

They'll look, but they won't touch the high-maintenance Robinson, who played in New York for four-plus seasons until he was traded to the Celtics at the trading deadline in the 2009-10 season.

When D'Antoni was initially asked about re-signing Robinson Monday at the team's practice facility in Greenburgh, he shot a look as if to say, are you kidding? But his answer was more on the diplomatic side, saying reporters would have to check with interim GM Glen Grunwald.

That really wasn't necessary, since just about everyone in the organization is opposed to bringing back Robinson, who was waived by Oklahoma City on Christmas Eve.

But with the rookie Shumpert walking stiffly in a knee brace, and expected to miss two to four weeks with a sprained ligament in his right knee, that summed up the team's need to find a point guard for their bench. Carrying 14 players, the Knicks have a roster spot available. Toney Douglas will continue to start at the point, with the Knicks counting heavily on the third-year man.

What they'll do for Wednesday's game at Golden State is give backup minutes to Mike Bibby, who was not used by D'Antoni in the season opener against Boston. Bibby had his own injury issues in the preseason, including some back trouble, and isn't quite sure what he'll be able to do in his first game as a Knick."