GREENBURGH, N.Y. - Danilo Gallinari said what he admires most about Celtics All-Star Paul Pierce's game is that he doesn't go full speed the entire time, but instead picks his spots where he suddenly, and effectively, strikes. Gallinari has the same tendencies in his game: He can go several plays without being seemingly involved and then quickly turn it on.
But while the 22-year-old still has some growing to do into the role of a primary scorer and offensive focal point, the Knicks want to see him engage more and not allow the game to go away from him.
"I think he needs to be more aggressive on his catching and shooting, catching and ripping, passing the ball, going to the basket, yeah," Mike D'Antoni said after yesterday's practice at MSG Training Center. "And we talked about that. For him to go to the next level, it's not changing his game. It's changing your focus and not wait for the game to get close and now I'm going to really turn it on. When you play 25 to 30 minutes, it has to be the hardest 30 minutes you've played in your life. That will get him up one more level."
BLOG: Alan Hahn's 'The Knicks Fix'
Gallinari, however, is quick to debate this issue, saying his aggressiveness "is definitely better than the beginning of last year" and added that in D'Antoni's option-loaded system "you can have a different protagonist every game."
But the most successful NBA teams are generally anchored by one or two main guys who carry the offense. Pierce and Ray Allen do it for Boston. Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol do it for the Lakers. The Knicks have Amar'e Stoudemire, but the reason they remain very interested in Carmelo Anthony is because he brings that go-to scorer's mentality every night. Gallinari, however, doesn't believe that will work here.
"We are trying to build a chemistry together and being aggressive does not mean you have to go and take whatever your man gives you," he said. "You have to also respect your teammates . . . We have some plays that we want to go to certain players and we want to do certain things. Your defender gives you something, gives you a back door, but you don't do it because you want to stay in the play."
D'Antoni still raves about Gallinari's potential, yet wants to see him become a more effective post-up scorer. That will come in time, but right now the emphasis is for Gallinari to focus more on attacking the offensive glass.
Gallinari is the Knicks' prized possession and a player they'd rather not have to give up in a trade for Anthony, who remains with the Nuggets but is likely to be moved before the February trade deadline. Anthony Randolph, another young talent on the Knicks, has yet to find himself in this system and presently appears to be a bench player, which could diminish his trade value. Randolph has put up decent numbers in the first two preseason games, averaging 15 points in 20.5 minutes per game, but his role remains undefined.
Notes & quotes: D'Antoni made it official that Russian rookie Timofey Mozgov will start at center Wednesday night against the Celtics at Madison Square Garden. Mozgov, however, may not face Shaquille O'Neal, who did not play last night against the 76ers because of a hip issue. According to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation, the Knicks had serious internal discussions about making a contract offer to O'Neal early in the free-agency process . . . Eddy Curry (hamstring) and Kelenna Azubuike (knee) worked out on a side court during practice and did some light shooting.
10/12/2010 11:37 PM
never asked Gallo to do anything but launch 3s