Nate Robinson won' t be returning to New York, according to multiple reports.

The Knicks' free-agent options narrowed a
bit yesterday as Nate Robinson signed a
two-year deal with the Denver Nuggets for
the bi-annual exception, according to
multiple reports (including this one from
Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports).
It wasn't as if Robinson was sorely needed
by the Knicks, who are still in the market
for a third point guard.
The truth is, Robinson—who prefers scoring
to passing and breathing—would have only
been desirable for the veteran's minimum,
which is coincidentally all the Knicks can
offer.
The Knicks' real problem is that their
options are dwindling. As players like
Robinson get signed up, others may see
more competitive offers from NBA teams.
General manager Glen Grunwald already
split the reduced mid-level exception
between Pablo Prigioni and Metta World
Peace and the team doesn't have a bi-
annual exception to offer.
The teams that do have exceptions at their
disposal ultimately have a better chance to
sign quality players like Kenyon Martin,
who Grunwald still hopes to re-sign. And,
as ESPNNewYork.com's Jared Zwerling
explained, guys like Martin can afford to be
patient.
Zwerling:
Requests for updates from Martin's
representation were unanswered.
A player source told
ESPNNewYork.com that Martin
remains "a good possibility" for
the Knicks, but he could still be in
the market for a $3 million deal.
The Knicks only have veteran's
minimums to spend, and they
could be exploring cheaper
alternatives who have fresher legs.
Martin has received interest from other
teams this year, but there's a sense that the
first team to offer anything above the
veteran's minimum will land the former
top-overall pick. And that doesn't
necessarily have to be a team in the title
hunt.
A less-competitive team could sign Martin
and deal him sometime after Dec. 15,
hoping to pick up future assets in the
process.