It left the Knicks, already missing veteran big men Rasheed Wallace, Amare Stoudemire, Marcus Camby and Kurt Thomas, undersized against the Wizards' front line that includes Nene and Emeka Okafor.

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Players such as Jason Kidd, Kurt Thomas, Rasheed Wallace and Marcus Camby, all 38 or older, were counted on to provide postseason experience but either weren't healthy (Thomas and Wallace), playing poorly (Kidd) or hardly playing at all (Camby) by the time the second round began.

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"These guys have all played a major role somewhere for some team, " Knicks coach Mike Woodson said of his veterans, mentioning Thomas, Kidd, Wallace, Prigioni and Marcus Camby by name, although Camby doesn't sound interested in coaching.

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It's a damaging blow for the Knicks, who loaded up on veteran big men this season but have now lost two of them for good in Kurt Thomas and Wallace, and have gotten almost nothing from Marcus Camby.

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The Knicks are still without several other key big men, such as Amar'e Stoudemire (right knee debridement), Marcus Camby (left plantar fasciitis), Rasheed Wallace (fractured let fifth metatarsal) and Kurt Thomas (right foot acute stress reaction), which is why Woodson has had to rely more on the 6-foot-10 Novak and 6-foot-8 Copeland, who aren't nearly as capable defensively.

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