Josh Hart is still not shy about hating his role with the Knicks, especially the lack of use in the offense outside of transition and catch-and-shoot opportunities.
It's not ideal and it's not what he envisioned. He still balks at his opinion that he's a power forward.
“Damn, that’s not true,” he repeated Thursday. “I'm a security guard.”
At only 6 feet 4 inches, that's an understandable take. Collisioning in the paint with Giannis Antetokounmpo before being a spectator of the offense is no fun at all.
But after months of uncertainty and several public airings of dissatisfaction earlier in the season, Hart told the Post that he was finally able to accept the sacrifice.
“Well, it took 40 games. It's a process,” said Hart, who entered Thursday's game against the Nuggets averaging just 6.5 shot attempts. “Obviously, I never expected this year to turn out like this. But that's where we are. It's just a matter of sacrificing something and doing some of it.”
Neither Hart's production nor his minutes have changed much since the arrival of OG Anunoby. If anything, they're worse.
Prior to signing, Hart was averaging 7.5 points and 5.9 rebounds in 28.4 minutes while shooting 45% from the field (only 33.7% from deep).
Will he play against the Nuggets on Thursday after the trade? He averaged 27.5 minutes, 6.4 points, and 7.9 rebounds while shooting 37.5 percent (26.7 percent from 3).
But when the team is winning, it's much easier to recognize and accept the role.
Additionally, Hart on the court has sparked recent success for the Knicks.
Heading into Thursday, he's part of the “death lineup” that has been a key reason the Knicks have been the best fourth-quarter team since the beginning of the year.
“Whether I like it or not, whatever the team needs, just stay calm,” Hart said. “Things can change, you never know. But that's what they wanted me to do, and I was like, okay, I'll do it.”
For example, in Tuesday's win over the Nets, Hart struggled until the final minutes, when his blocks and rebounds were a key part of the most important play of the night.
Tom Thibodeau is grateful.
“It was a great hustle play. …Those things are hard to measure. Great hustle play, right? If you look at his stat line, it's not that appealing as it stands out,” the coach said. “But I always say this about his net ratings per 48 minutes…over a period of time that's important and that tells you something. If you look at his net ratings over the course of a season; [plus-7.7 heading into Thursday, good for third on the Knicks], you can see how much he stands out. ”
Hurts might not be completely thrilled with being an energy guy who doesn't see the ball much.
But now he has no intention of fighting it.
“We're still trying to find our spots. We're pretty similar in terms of positions and things like that, but right now I'm not worried about anything like that, anything that's out of my control,” Hart said. “Just focus on going out and playing. Play with energy. Play fast.”
