HARTFORD, Conn. — J.R. Smith started at off guard for the Knicks in their first preseason game Wednesday, but coach Derek Fisher was quick to point out nothing is etched in stone.

After watching the Knicks at both ends against the Celtics, nothing should be etched in stone because they looked like they were stuck in cement.

“It’s going to take a few months. Over the course of the year understanding where everybody is going to be,” Smith said about getting a team to feel comfortable in yet another new system. “It’s going to take a while.”

That notion actually caused some relief because if the Knicks were a finished product in their 106-86, defense-free, turnover-filled defeat to the Celtics then there would be some serious trouble. Smith, who scored seven points on 3-of-8 shooting in just over 19 minutes, felt the Knicks did too much thinking about their new triangle offense, and not enough doing in their preseason opener.

“We went out there and started thinking too much instead of just playing,” said Smith. “We have to trust our instincts a little more and just play. We all know how to get into our offense and just play the right way. It’s just a matter of … if they take something away, don’t get too anxious or too nervous and turn the ball over.

“And don’t let our offense dictate our defense. We got turnovers, put our head down and they kept running the ball down our backs.”

Valid points. The Knicks were pretty dysfunctional all the way around but that’s what happens in Game 1. The best thing was that it didn’t count.

“Every night, regardless of the score, it’s about finding ways to get better,” said coach Derek Fisher who officially made his unofficial Knicks head-coaching debut.

Fisher said nagging injuries affecting Tim Hardaway, Jr. (hip inflammation, played) and Iman Shumpert (hamstring, held out) contributed to Smith starting. But mainly it was Smith himself.

“J.R. has been consistent in practice,” said Fisher. “ His work ethic has been great. He’s picking up the system as well as you can possibly expect of a guy in the first week or so.

“So we felt it was right to go this way. We spoke to [the team] about the fact that things can change. Don’t take this as a final way we’re going to go about our starting lineup, but I think J.R. deserved this.”

The fans didn’t deserve what followed, but what the heck. Everybody’s learning. The primary point Smith learned about the Knicks’ new offense is that he didn’t know a lot of the things that he thought he knew.

“I feel great about it,” Smith said about the triangle offense in general. “There’s a lot that I thought I knew that I really didn’t.”