"Mike D'Antoni threw his youthful Knicks experiment to the veteran wolves of Boston Saturday night, and it quickly needed revising. Rookie Timofey Mozgov got his first piece of Shaquille O'Neal and lasted about six minutes against the biggest body in the NBA. Wilson Chandler moved from shooting guard to the post, where he battled Kevin Garnett in the opening two minutes, and was subbed out after picking up two fouls and giving up two easy buckets. With Amar'e Stoudemire watching in street clothes on his day off, D'Antoni shuffled the lineup to make it smaller and faster - starting both Raymond Felton and Toney Douglas in the backcourt - while hoping to find a combination he could use throughout the season. What D'Antoni got was a boost from familiar starters in familiar positions - Danilo Gallinari and Felton, who combined for 36 points - and a third-quarter defensive meltdown that led to a preseason 97-84 defeat in front of 15,318 at the XL Center. "What we have to find out is that when Amar'e's not in there that we have other solutions. said D'Antoni, who'll have four more preseason games to tinker before the opener against the Raptors on Oct. 27. "Tonight we found some. Obviously we have to get better but some encouraging signs. While Mozgov's progression has been a big talking point of the preseason - as well as his first matchup with O'Neal, who last week said he had never heard of the Russian center - D'Antoni indicated Chandler was the key to utilizing the kind of run-and-gun offense he had in Phoenix." http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/b...ord_despite_efforts_of_danilo_gallinari_.html
