Leftovers: Knicks, Nets share road to nowhere

The Knicks and Nets meet tonight in Brooklyn, and both New York NBA franchises are off to dismal starts.

Knicks coach Mike Woodson is on the hot seat with his team 3-13. George Karl, fired by the Denver Nuggets after last season, was asked if he would be interested in the Knicks job if Woodson was fired.

“There are days I wish it would ring, and there are days I don’t want it to ring,” Karl told blitzkrieg.com. “I mean, I watch the Knicks play, and I wouldn’t want to be in that hell for a million dollars.”

Karl, a studio analyst for ESPN, said he supports Woodson.

“It’s New York City and the Garden and the immensity of the pressure,” he said. “I think Mike Woodson is standing up to it with tremendous integrity.”

■ HE HATE ME — Veteran guard Nate Robinson said he thinks NBA referees have a vendetta against him.

Robinson, who is with the Nuggets, told the Denver Post that he thinks he is a target of the refs who are looking to whistle him for the slightest infraction.

“They hate me. They hate me,” Robinson said. “I don’t know why, but it is what it is. I already know I’ve got the target on my back, but I’ll play through it. I don’t care. I really don’t. It doesn’t bother me none. If I get a call, I get a call. If I don’t, I don’t. If I get a tech, hopefully it’s not in the fourth quarter. Hopefully, I don’t get any more. But I know I will. It’s nothing new for me.”

Is this just typical paranoia? Or maybe Lil’ Nate, who stands all of 5 feet 9 inches tall, has a Napoleonic complex. Then again, perhaps Robinson thinks every NBA ref is Joey Crawford, who hates anyone in shorts who likes to yap.

■ SHRINE TO THY SELF — Usually, a famous athlete will open a bar or a restaurant as a way to pay homage to himself. Think Wayne Gretzky’s in Toronto, which is decorated with everything Great One.

But Cristiano Ronaldo is taking the concept a step further. The soccer superstar is opening his own museum.

Ronaldo, the linchpin of Real Madrid, will have a place where his fans can gather and worship him. Never mind that he’s only 28 and his career still has a ways to go. But if you’re in Portugal, be sure to make the trip to the island of Madeira, where Ronaldo grew up. Once there, you can bask in all the glory that is Ronaldo.

■ TEBOW ON TV — Since we at Leftovers know you can’t get enough of Tim Tebow, here’s the latest. Television networks are seeking out the former NFL quarterback to serve as an analyst.

According to USA Today, CBS, ESPN, Fox and the SEC Network are engaged in a biding war for Tebow’s services. He could be used as a studio analyst, a game analyst or on a “Gameday” pregame show, which is what the SEC Network reportedly has in mind.

Actually, it sounds a lot like Tebow’s playing career, doesn’t it? Use him as a quarterback. Use him as a tight end. Use him on special teams.

But maybe the best TV fit for Tebow, a devout Christian, is on Pat Robertson’s “The 700 Club,” on which religion, not football, is the theme. There, Tebow’s word always would be, shall we say, “Good.”

COMPILED BY STEVE CARP LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL