Playing with Purpose and Vision: Stephon Marbury, New York Knicks guard

"I trained my mind, my body and my soul this summer....This year is for my father."

--Stephon Marbury, veteran New York Knicks guard, who after a traumatic year in which his father (following a heart attack while at Madison Square Garden), his aunt and his mentor died.

Marbury, 31, has one final year on his contract with the Knicks that will pay him $22 million. He and the Knicks have a new coach, Mike D'Antoni, who says, "He can be a very positive force on our team."

Excerpts from the New York Times, 10/1/2008.