Honest Talk With Coach Reenergizes Knicks, Josh Hart
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LAS VEGAS — An unvarnished conversation between first-year New York Knicks coach Mike Brown and guard Josh Hart in mid-November appears to have steered the club back on course and propelled it to Tuesday’s Emirates NBA Cup championship game against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
After starting the season as a reserve and repeatedly sitting during fourth quarters, Hart met privately with Brown soon after a 124-107 home loss to the Orlando Magic on Nov. 12. Brown told ESPN the meeting allowed both men to clear the air: the coach admitted he was still learning how to use Hart, while the 30-year-old guard accepted responsibility for subpar play, saying the team “has standards.”
Brown reinserted Hart into the starting lineup immediately after the discussion, and New York has gone 9-1 since, rebuilding its status as an Eastern Conference contender. “It was a blessing in disguise,” Brown said, noting that Hart’s limited preseason minutes — the result of an early nerve injury in his shooting hand — left the coaching staff uncertain about his role.
Hart had averaged fewer than 24 minutes and topped 30 minutes only once before the lineup change. Over the past 10 games, he has logged 35 minutes a night while producing 16.0 points, 9.2 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 2.1 steals. He has also raised his three-point accuracy to 41 percent during that stretch, capitalizing when opponents assign centers to guard him.
The 6-foot-5 wing acknowledged frustration at being benched late in games — “A couple times I felt like I was going to snap,” he said — but credited patience and humility for preventing an escalation. Brown compared Hart’s all-around impact to the role Andre Iguodala once played for Golden State, calling Hart “elite” in several subtle aspects of the game.
New York’s offense still carries elements of Tom Thibodeau’s system, yet Brown’s modernized approach now leans heavily on Hart’s versatility. The turnaround arrives with heightened expectations; ownership demanded a Finals appearance when the season began.
The Knicks and Spurs tip off for the inaugural NBA Cup trophy on Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena.
Source: ESPN
