Derek Fisher's starting five is starting to take shape.

Fisher went with Iman Shumpert at shooting guard and Jason Smith at power forward in the New York Knicks' preseason finale Friday, against the Toronto Raptors in Montreal.

Those two are likely to start in the regular-season opener as well.

"We’re still identifying a specific group of guys that work best together, but I think it’s safe to say it’s close to it," Fisher told reporters in Montreal, when asked if he'd stick with this lineup for Wednesday's game against the Chicago Bulls. "Over the next four, five days we’ll hopefully get more work and get those guys comfortable with each other."

Fisher has said all along he's looking for lineups that are well-balanced defensively. So it makes sense to start Shumpert over J.R. Smith and Tim Hardaway Jr., the other two candidates at shooting guard. Shumpert is the strongest individual defender on the roster.

He will share a backcourt spot with Jose Calderon, who missed the final two preseason games with a calf injury but is expected to play Wednesday.

It will be interesting to see how Fisher divides the minutes up with Shumpert, Hardaway Jr. and Smith. All three can handle the ball or play small forward, so they can share the floor together at times. But you'd think at least one guy will get fewer minutes than he'd hoped for coming into the season.

In the frontcourt it appears Jason Smith will start, alongside Samuel Dalembert and Carmelo Anthony.

Fisher started Andrea Bargnani at power forward in the preseason opener, but Bargnani missed the Knicks' final six preseason games due to a hamstring injury. His status for Wednesday is uncertain. And it looks like Fisher will turn to Smith instead of Amar'e Stoudemire and Quincy Acy.

Smith has good range on his shot, and has shown a proclivity for using his size and strength to battle for rebounds and defend the paint.

Assuming Fisher starts Smith, it will be interesting to see how he divides the minutes up with Stoudemire, Acy and Bargnani on the second unit.

Question: Do you think starting Shumpert at shooting guard and Smith at power forward is the right call? Or should Fisher consider a different starting five?

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