According to Knicks guard Stephon Marbury, who guarded Toronto Raptors star Vince Carter on Saturday night, the Raptors look like a team who have already moved on from their superstar.

Marc Berman of the New York Times reports that Marbury was suprised with how the Raptors under utilized Carter's talents, from running Carter off screens to free him up to utilizing his height by posting up the smaller Marbury when Carter was his defensive assignment.

"They don't run any plays for him," Marbury said. "He doesn't get the ball at all. You could tell he's not the focal of the team anymore. I don't understand it, but hey, he doesn't have to be the focal when he plays against us."

"I don't think the offense is geared for him," Marbury said. " I'm just speaking of just guarding him. When you're guarding him, you expect to be running off a lot of screens, having a lot of isolations, For him to be posting me up. There wasn't any of that."

Carter is expected to be traded from the Raptors after requesting to be moved.

Allan Houston practiced with the Knicks for the first time today participating in contact drills and a half-court scrimmage.  

"It's the first time I've been able to do something like this in a long time," he said. "It was an exciting day for me."

Mr. Houston received rave reviews from his teammates regarding his performance today, however Lenny Wilkens was a bit more critical.  "His timing is off," Wilkens said after the lengthy practice in preparation for Saturday afternoon's game at the Garden against the Raptors. "Timing covers a lot of areas. But you can see his knowledge of the game come through."

New York Knickerbockers President of Basketball Operations Isiah Thomas announced today that guard Jamison Brewer has been activated and guard Moochie Norris has been placed on the Injured List with left Achilles tendinitis.

Brewer, 6-4, 195-pounds, had missed all eight regular season games, after being placed on the Injured List on Nov. 1 due to a sprained right big toe. In six preseason games, the three-year NBA veteran averaged 1.3 points and 11.8 minutes.

Norris, 6-1, 185-pounds, has six total points and 45 total minutes in seven games this season.

According to the New York Daily News, Isiah Thomas had another conversation with Chicago Bulls GM John Paxson in recent days, and it now appears that Thomas would be willing to trade Michael Sweetney for Eddy Curry.  

The two big market teams have been very active over the last few months, with both clubs significantly reshaping their rosters.

Thomas, the Knicks president, believes that Sweetney has a big upside, but Sweetney is an undersized power forward while Curry is a 22-year-old, agile 6-11 center.

Several executives feel that Curry will flourish once he leaves Chicago, his hometown.

The Bulls appear to be acting very patient in their negotiations to move Curry.

The New York Knicks have activated center Bruno Sundov from the injured list.

Sundov missed the first five games of the season due to Achilles tendinitis.

Sundov averaged 3.6 points per game in the preseason.

The Knicks Dr. Callahan failed free agent Eddie Robinson on his physical Friday, determining he needed potentially season-ended surgery on a congenital big-toe condition, a move that saved Knicks owner James Dolan $2.6 million.

The Knicks discovered Dr. Callahan when she worked as a freelancer for the NBA Players' Association and detected Vin Baker's irregular heartbeat, advising surgery.

In his first post on the Knicksology blog, Mike Kurylo charts a defensive trend the Knicks have been exhibiting these first couple games of the season, allowing their opponents the second highest FG% in the league.

Using a specialized formula for a term called effective shooting percentage, the Knicks are allowing teams to shoot 12% higher than the league average.

Jamal Crawford was having his worst game as a Knick, going scoreless in eleven minutes before he was inadvertently hit in the mouth by Indiana's Stephen Jackson with 6:16 left in the second quarter and fell to the floor.  He would not return to the game.

"I was coming off a screen and Jackson got me," Crawford told a Knicks' team spokesman. "I don't really know how he got me, but my neck snapped back. I tried to stop (my head) from hitting the ground, and that's when I hurt my neck."

Crawford said he did not know whether he will be able to play Tuesday, when the Knicks visit the San Antonio Spurs.

While the Knicks may like the idea of having defensive juggernaut Ron Artest on their roster, the Pacers' forward doesn't believe he'll end up in the Big Apple any time soon.

"It's not happening," Artest said. "I could see him trying just because of my value as player right now. A lot of that trade talk is other general managers trying to set up the Pacers and make them look bad, like we have a lot of controversy going on, so they can get me on their team. They're trying to get me out of Indiana. But it's not working."

Artest is not requesting a trade despite what he feels was an injustice. "I think my future is headed in the right direction," he said. "I got to make sure I do the right thing in my future. I like it here. Indiana is a good organization."

"I think the fans still want me here. I'm not smoking marijuana. I didn't get a DUI, didn't have a handgun on me."

Recently waived Knicks forward Shandon Anderson has agreed to sign with the Miami Heat, according to a league source.

Anderson was in Miami on Saturday and has passed the team physical, paving the way for him to be officially signed either Sunday or Monday.

Anderson agreed to a $20 million buyout of the remaining three years, $24 million of his contract with the Knicks earlier in the week, paving the way for him to join the team of his choice.

A number of teams -- including the Bulls, Rockets, Nuggets and Warriors -- also made a push for Anderson. However, Anderson wanted to join a team with a legitimate shot at an NBA title. The Heat are starting Rasual Butler --a former second-round pick in his third year -- ahead of veteran Wesley Person at small forward.