"Coach Mike D'Antoni said despite the Knicks' 113-86 blowout of Detroit on Tuesday, he still feels under the gun, but has not given up on his preseason prediction of contending for an NBA title.

A giant challenge awaits as the Knicks (8-13) embark on their only back-to-back-to-back set. It starts tonight when they play host to the Eastern Conference-leading Bulls, who entered last night with an 18-5 record. The Knicks play in Boston tomorrow and play host to the Nets Saturday as the lockout-reduced schedule rears its ugly head.

"The only thing [Tuesday] night proved is I could get one good night's sleep this week,'' D'Antoni said. "That's the only thing that happened. Other than that, we're still 8-13 and the posse is after me, so I'm running as fast as I can run. Hopefully I can turn this posse into a parade. That's my focus. I'm working as hard as I can work.''"