In fact, the Magic had this game in control through the fourth quarter (though Wilson Chandler made things interesting when he started to get hot from outside in the third), when D'Antoni decided to go with a "small" lineup of Harrington, Gallinari, Robinson, Duhon and Chandler with 8:52 left. For the remainder of the quarter, this lineup scored 30 points, including 10 points in the final minute owing to great clock management -- and one terrific out of bounds set -- which produced six points in nine seconds to cut the Magic lead to 109 to 107 with 24 seconds left.

What made this mini-explosion more interesting was that Orlando itself seemed to seal the game on a great shot by Turkoglu on the previous possession. The Magic took roughly 20 seconds off the clock, and then Turkoglu dribbled toward the free throw line with Gallinari defending him tightly, and shot off the wrong foot to make the score 108-101 with 33 seconds left. Smart play by Turkoglu because the motion of this jump made it appear he was actually going to lob to Howard (which caused Gallinari to instinctively retreat to help)...so that when he actually released the shot and got nothing but net, it was extremely deflating for the Knicks.

But then came the set with produced two quick baskets. With 33 seconds left, Harrington and Chandler set up on the FT line, with Harrington closer to the inbounder (Gallinari). Robinson sets up next to Harrington on the left elbow and Duhon is next to Nate on the left block.  The formation is essentially an "L".  (you'll see a mirror image of this set from the second execution when the Knicks inbounded from the opposite baseline, which is pictured further down).

Nate fakes toward Duhon, and then cuts *between* Harrington and Chandler, with Harrington turning around and moving slightly to screen Lee. Because Lee has been caught off guard by Robinson's sudden cut, Lee is completely taken out of the play and Nate gets the ball at the 3 point line wide open for a 3 pointer. Magic 108 Knicks 104.

Look how open Nate is after the screen (sorry for the low quality screen grabs):

After Alston is immediately fouled and makes one of two free throws, the Knicks get the ball back on the opposite sideline (right side of the floor), and run the same set. This time Chandler is closer to the inbounder, but everyone else is set up the same way. You can see this below:

Robinson does the same thing, curling around Chandler and then Harrington this time,  cutting into the lane from the left elbow, with Duhon running over to meet him from the other block. This time (no doubt because Van Gundy in the last timeout emphasized that leaving Duhon was far preferable to leaving Nate), both Lee and Alston run to blanket Robinson as he cuts between Chandler and Harrington, while Duhon runs toward the other elbow. 

Lee makes it through the screen this time, and Nate receives the pass again from Gallinari, but he gets it further out (the pass is also better contested by Howard). Nate drives toward the FT line and the Magic have him well covered with Lee and Alston.



Robinson double pumps and passes out to Duhon on the left elbow out beyond the 3 point line. Alston scrambles to cover Duhon, who motions for a 3 pointer, and then rifles it out to Gallinari, who has an open 3 pointer a couple of feet beyond the top of the key. BANG! Six points in nine seconds, and it's 109-107 Magic.

In the end, the Magic made their free throws, Nate was bumped on a late three pointer but didn't get the call...and it was a loss. I was encouraged by how much fight the Knicks had at the end, even when they were off-kilter, still adjusting to the varied lineups brought on by the addition of Hughes and Wilcox (who are still finding their way, to be kind).

More concerning are the play of David Lee (just barely got the double-double, but shot only 4 for 13), and Duhon in particular, who did not make a single shot and seems to have lost his zip on passes and on his own offense -- he looks positively anemic on some possessions, even when he's not being defended very tightly.

Gallinari has made a case for himself to get more minutes with his clutch shots and energetic defense and rebounding in the fourth quarter.  Tonight, the Knicks are going to be playing the 76ers though, which is going to be a much greater test of Gallo's defensive limitations than the Magic's more perimeter oriented attack. Also, while Larry Hughes continues to be a punchline in NBA fans' eyes, D'Antoni seems to recognize his capable and tenacious defense (bad shots be damned)...so we are likely to see much more Hughes, especially against teams like the Sixers who run roughshod over the Knicks' weak on-ball and interior defense. Lots of interesting lineup juggling and decisions for D'Antoni to continue to wrestle with.