Jeff Hornacek said that Phil Jackson has been "hands off" and "helpful" during the preseason as Hornacek installs a new offense for the New York Knicks.

"Phil's been great. He's not trying to take over and make us do anything. He's given us the leeway," Hornacek said after practice Sunday. "There are some things that we do that aren't the triangle stuff [such as] our early [offense]. Quite honestly, we thought he would say, 'Let's not do that.' Or, 'Let's not do that option.' But he hasn't said that at all."

Hornacek has run "aspects" of Jackson's triangle offense in the preseason while encouraging the Knicks to increase their pace and hunt for opportunities for easy shots early in possessions.

"We talk quite a bit, but he's been hands off," Hornacek said. "He gives some directions here and there. If he sees something or he says, 'Hey, let's take a look, clean this up, this particular action.' So it's good.

"It's another coach out there -- he's run it for years and years, so when he sees something -- really, he's not coming in there saying, 'Hey, change it to this,' or 'Change it to that.' It's good, additional information."

Hornacek on Sunday acknowledged the criticism of the offense and also defended it, noting that many teams run elements of the triangle in their offense.

"A lot of teams throw it in the post, run splits and cut and do that. So there are some other aspects of it [in many offenses]," Hornacek said, adding that some of the criticism stems from the offense's slow pace.

"If it slows you down, I think that's where most guys [who critique the triangle] are probably coming from," Hornacek said. "You end up being a slow-down team and never get easy buckets, and you're running that half-court set all the time. First of all, guys don't like to run it. Secondly, it makes it very difficult to get easy buckets early in the offense. And I think in today's game, those early buckets are nice to get."