PHILADELPHIA — The Knicks came out of the All-Star break talking with more urgency and backing it up.
In the words of Tom Thibodeau before Thursday’s tipoff, “We can’t keep going because we still have 27 games left.”
And in the words of hustle forward Josh Hart, “The next 27 games, this is where it really begins, it really begins.”
Hart and the Knicks defeated the Sixers 110-96 on Thursday at Wells Fargo Center, ending a four-game losing streak despite Jalen Brunson being off and turning it into a viable item.
Bojan Bogdanovic had his best game as a Knick, dropping 22 points on 6-of-6 shooting.
Hart (18 points, 12 rebounds), Precious Achiuwa (18 points, 11 rebounds) and Donte DiVincenzo (16 points, 4 treys) had another strong performance to help ease Brunson’s lackluster performance in his home arena in college. Ta.
The All-Star had 21 points and 12 assists, which is certainly respectable. However, they shot just 5 of 18 and had seven turnovers.
His teammates helped defeat the Sixers with a back-breaking run in the fourth quarter, extending a six-point lead to 15 points in less than five minutes.
The powerhouse Celtics invaded MSG on Saturday, an important win that halted New York’s slide that threatened to reach a worrying level.
The Knicks (34-22) remained in fourth place in the East.
Meanwhile, the Sixers (32-23) aren’t much of a threat without Joel Embiid, who is out indefinitely with knee surgery.
They are currently just 6-15 without their reigning MVP, who may or may not return to the playoffs.
The Knicks also have injuries, but they benefited from the return of three rotation players: DiVincenzo, Bogdanovic and Isaiah Hartenstein, all of whom played their last game before the suspension with minor illnesses. He was absent.
Hartenstein’s playing time was limited due to his Achilles tendon, and he was scoreless in limited action.
Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and OG Anunoby remain sidelined with unknown return dates, but Thursday proved Brunson could use some help.
