You don't have to see Larry Hughes' surgically repaired finger or the tattooed teardrops under his left eye to know he's been around. After 12 seasons and six teams, Hughes has witnessed just about every professional injustice a veteran can see.
So when he suffered through a preseason in which he made only one field goal and failed to log a minute in the first two regular season games, Hughes showed true professionalism.
"I worked hard and I stayed in the gym, you know," Hughes said. "(In) the preseason (I) was just trying to feel my way only playing a couple of minutes here and there. I couldn't really get a feel for the game."
But being the veteran that he is, when Hughes' name was called against Philadelphia on Halloween, he responded with 18 points in 39 minutes. Hughes admirably replaced starter Nate Robinson (sprained ankle) well enough to assume that role in the following game – not coincidentally New York's first win of the season.
"The big thing about Larry Hughes is his maturity," said Knicks forward/center David Lee after defeating New Orleans 117-111 Monday night. "He could have easily been upset about not playing the first couple of games. Instead he kept his mouth shut, he kept working hard and that shows he's a pro."
The advantages of Hughes over Robinson were apparent from the tip. The Knicks – lifeless for the first 11 quarters of the season – finally showed some offensive structure as they rattled off a 16-6 run.
With every play, Hughes sent a reminder to the Hornets, fans and even to coach Mike D'Antoni that he never went anywhere. He began by grabbing his own rebound, taking the ball into the corner and draining a 20-footer. After that he took the Hornets' Julian Wright into the other corner for another 20-footer. Still not finished, Hughes then stole the inbounds pass.
Whether it was setting Wilson Chandler up for an easy bucket or pump-faking his defender into the air before driving the lane, Hughes showed the Knicks exactly what they had been missing.
"Tonight he had 20 points but his best attribute is his defense and the length of his arms on defense," added Lee. "He gets a lot of steals and disrupts a lot of plays."
At 6-5, Hughes obviously offers more defensively than the 5-9 Robinson. But there are more benefits than just the obvious.
While Chris Duhon stands only 6-1, he's actually better defending shooting guards rather than point guards. Hughes' presence means D'Antoni can pick Duhon's assignments carefully.
"This line up gives us a lot of versatility," said Duhon. "Larry (Hughes) is a guy who can guard a bigger guy, or also guard a point guard."
And even though New Orleans' Chris Paul went for 32 points and 13 assists against New York, Hughes still got decent reviews for his effort.
"Guarding Chris Paul is not easy," said D'Antoni after the game. "I thought Larry Hughes did a terrific job on him."
But even more important than his specific defensive assignment, Hughes encourages good team defense. He communicates on pick and rolls, he is keenly aware of when to apply double-teams and he rarely gets distracted with complaining to the refs.
New York – a team that has lacked true veteran leadership in recent years – needs Hughes' voice more than ever. Who else is equipped to handle the finer points of the game, like the art of taking a charge?
"We have to change how people look at you," Hughes said prior to Monday's game. "(Referees) watch film, too. They see who's stepping in and taking charges. They kind of get accustomed to you not doing that, so the more you do it on a consistent basis, then you'll get those (calls) more. We do it night-in and night-out and get the reputation... we'll start to get that respect"
And with defensive execution, Hughes thinks New York can, "stop giving up 30 points a quarter.
"24 and below is where we need to be," he added.
{AUTHOR_BOX}After three straight poor starts for the Knicks, the Hornets were held to only 24 points in the first quarter Monday night. And while they allowed more in each subsequent frame, the Knicks' own offense surged in the second half. To Hughes, it was the perfect balance.
"We just knew we wanted to get off to a good start," said Hughes. "We have been finishing games strong. We just haven't had that good start to sustain runs and lows on our end… We know we can score and we know that we can buckle down late in games and do some positive things but we haven't been getting off to a good start."
Like the Knicks, Hughes' season didn't get off to a good start. But, with Robinson (who made only 10 of 35 field goals before his injury) out of the lineup for at least the next two weeks, Hughes has the chance to turn around his season and the team's.
"I probably haven't had anybody handle it better than him," concluded D'Antoni "The position he was put in, he was very professional and never down and never blaming anybody. It's funny how you do the right things and things work out, most of the time. I'm glad it worked out for him and us."
It may be a little premature to say things have "worked out," but surely Hughes has been around long enough to know that.
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Metro New York's Tony Williams and HOOPSWORLD's Tommy Beer contributed to the reporting of this piece.
