Knicks Still Wondering the Whereabouts of Absent Sprewell

Any day now the Knicks are going to put Latrell Sprewell’s picture on a milk carton together with a toll-free 800 number in the hope that anyone with information regarding his whereabouts will contact them. The civil suit Sprewell was facing in California in relation to an auto accident ended Tuesday afternoon, but the Knicks completed their third day of double practice sessions Thursday without receiving a phone call from Sprewell or his Atlanta-based agent, Robert Gist, to let them know when--or if--he plans to join them at their College of Charleston training camp.

The joke is that, with his penchant for expensive sports cars and high speed, Sprewell could have driven here by now from the Oakland area, where the trial took place. But as each day passes without a phone call, e-mail or facsimile message from Sprewell or Gist, the patience of Knicks officials dwindles along with their store of sympathy for Sprewell’s personal problems.

Of course, the Knicks have several phone numbers for Sprewell, but he’s not returning messages. “We’ve reached out to him,” General Manager Scott Layden said Thursday. “You’d love to have contact. It hasn’t been the case. It hasn’t been good communication, so it’s been stressful. But we can’t let a distraction bother the team.”

Coach Jeff Van Gundy said this is the first time in his 10 years with the Knicks that he can remember a player being absent without leave from training camp. “Barring a family emergency, he should be here,” Van Gundy said. “If he had a family emergency, he should let us know what’s going on. He didn’t. ... I know Scott has made multiple efforts to contact him.”

The last time Van Gundy spoke directly to Sprewell was in mid-September when he learned Sprewell’s trial date had been pushed back a week. According to one of Sprewell’s attorneys, the player arrived in the Oakland area from his home in Milwaukee on Sept. 23. He was in court the next day during the jury-selection process and continued to attend every court session.

“He probably was the most punctual client I ever had,” attorney Scott Stratman said. “If he said he was going to do something, he did it.”

Whenever Sprewell’s attorneys needed to consult with him during the period in which they were preparing for the case, they were able to do so through Gist. The agent hasn’t been as responsive with the Knicks, which is odd considering he asked them to begin negotiations on a contract extension for Sprewell during training camp.

When the trial ended, Sprewell headed to Milwaukee, where his girlfriend had given birth to a baby boy less than a week before he left to attend the trial. That family situation is good reason for Layden and Van Gundy to reserve judgment regarding any disciplinary measures they may take until they speak to Sprewell, but it doesn’t explain why their calls have gone unreturned.

Asked if he considered Sprewell’s failure to communicate a sign of disrespect, Van Gundy said that term is too strong. “He should be here,” Van Gundy said. “It’s a team commitment to be here. ... The idea that he missed practice to be at the trial, we all supported that. It’s after the trial was settled that he needed to make plans to get here as soon as possible. There was confusion and a certain lack of communication. I think communication is important.”

Co-captains Larry Johnson and Allan Houston both said they would have called Van Gundy in a similar situation, but neither was prepared to criticize Sprewell without first hearing his explanation. “You never know what’s happening,” Houston said. “I do know when he’s out there [on the court], he gives 100 percent and he plays his heart out. We hope he can put this behind him and dedicate himself.”

In the meantime, life--and practice--goes on for the Knicks. “I’m an optimistic guy,” Layden said. “I still have an eye on the door.” After all, Sprewell has to show up sometime to collect his $9-million salary.