Avery Johnson hints Gerald Wallace could start at PF vs. Knicks

The Nets will have an opportunity to try some experiments when they face the Knicks Wednesday night at Nassau Coliseum and one of them could involve Gerald Wallace starting at power forward, replacing Kris Humphries. With Amare Stoudemire out for two to three weeks with a ruptured cyst, New York could move Carmelo Anthony into the four spot, something that would like create a matchup problem for Humphries.

"I think everything is an open book for us," Johnson said Monday. "I’ve had teams before, even the 67-win team, we had a few different starting lineups. I’m not saying we will or we won’t. I think my job is to try to make the best decisions to give us the best chance to win, and if that’s something that we need to do, we will.If we don’t need to do it, we won’t."

Deron Williams, asked by Stefan Bondy about potential mismatches against Anthony, replied, "We’ll move Gerald Wallace to the four."

As for Humphries, he too was matter-of-fact about the possible loss of his starting job on Opening Night. "If you work for 10 years to get this job, you’re going to cherish this job. But at the same time, you look at it where if you don’t start, it’s not the end of the world," said Humphries, one of five players to average a double-double in points and rebounds the last two seasons.

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