PHILADELPHIA - The New York Knicks have begun a new era with coach Mike D'Antoni and team president Donnie Walsh — one that apparently does not include Stephon Marbury.

The former All-Star guard was placed on the inactive list prior to his team's 116-87 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.

"This is the direction that we're are going, and it is the decision that we made," D'Antoni said.

In New York's 120-115 season-opening win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday, Marbury dressed but sat on the end of the bench for the entirety of the game. He traveled with the team for his one but sat in street clothes.

The enigmatic guard, who has butted heads with teammates and coaches since joining his hometown team in the middle of the 2003-04 season, will earn $21.9 million this season — the last year on his contract. Marbury reportedly does not want to negotiate a buyout and has said that he will not take one penny less than the sum of his deal.

After a productive preseason, D'Antoni — and presumably Walsh — have decided to keep Marbury out of the rotation, allowing the team's brass to assess the progress of the younger players on the roster.

"We have a long view, and it wasn't tonight," said D'Antoni, who has taken over a team that has posted 23-59 records in two of the last three seasons. "If I was playing for everything for tonight, then obviously you do things different. You don't play for everything for tonight. What we're doing is try to build a base as we go forward."

Marbury famously made headlines prior to last season, when his testimony eventually sunk former coach and team president Isiah Thomas and Madison Square Garden in a multi-million dollar lawsuit filed against them by a former employee. Marbury admitted to a sexual tryst outside a strip club with an MSG intern.

In his 13th season, the 31-year-old Marbury has averaged 19.7 and 7.8 assists in his career with four teams.

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