Short-handed after trading their two top scorers and Marbury declining to play, the Knicks lost to the Milwaukee Bucks, 104-87, on Friday night.

Still, it was a successful day for the Knicks, who freed up coveted salary-cap space for the summer of 2010 when team president Donnie Walsh traded Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford in separate deals.

"We've accomplished a lot of things and again, I don't think we've compromised this season, which was important to me and to Donnie and the fans and everybody else," coach Mike D'Antoni said before the game. "We didn't compromise it. We will be fighting for the playoffs, which we were doing before. And we cleared cap to be a player as we go forward with our plan."

Crawford was sent to Golden State for forward Al Harrington. Hours later, Randolph was shipped to the Los Angeles Clippers along with reserve guard Mardy Collins for Cuttino Mobley and Tim Thomas.

Walsh has repeatedly said his goal was to get under the cap in time for a potentially sensational free-agent crop that could be headlined by James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

"I think that opening up cap space down the road for us is a big plus on our side and I hope our fans understand that that can give us an opportunity to make the team better according to the plan that I've outlined," Walsh said on a conference call. "So I'm trying to be true to what I said from Day One, and that's what I'm doing."

The three new players might not be available until Tuesday, so D'Antoni said he told Marbury there would be 30-35 minutes available Friday. However, the point guard again took his now-customary spot on the bench, where he has spent every minute this season, leaving the Knicks with only seven players in the opener of games on back-to-back nights.

D'Antoni said afterward that he wanted Marbury to play and would no longer address the issue. Marbury had a different view of the events.

"The only thing I'm at liberty to say is that I was told that they were moving forward, and I'm not the person who chooses who plays or doesn't," Marbury said.

Marbury's contract expires after this season and he isn't in the plans for the future, which is the Knicks' biggest concern.

Both Randolph and Crawford have deals that extend past 2010. Randolph is scheduled to make $17.3 million and Crawford $10.1 million in 2010-11. None of the players the Knicks brought back are under contract past 2010.

James, Wade and Bosh could become free agents that summer.