Josh Hart was sore. Extraordinarily sore. However nothing was going to cease him from making his season debut Friday night time towards the Boston Celtics.
The Knicks ahead had been sidelined for 3 weeks after struggling decrease again spasms simply seven minutes into the Oct. 2 preseason opener in Abu Dhabi. He missed the rest of New York’s exhibition slate and the regular-season opener towards the Cleveland Cavaliers at Madison Sq. Backyard on Wednesday.
“You don’t really know how often you use your back until you hurt your back,” Hart mentioned at his locker forward of tipoff Friday. “Final week I used to be feeling good, kinda hitting all my checkmarks, after which I attempted to undergo doing stay contact stuff and it was similar to — ‘yeah, nah. It’s not there. It’s not prepared but.’
“It’s frustrating ‘cause I wanna play. I wanna compete, but I gotta be smart with it.”
After which it occurred: Hart went by means of pregame warmups and determined to present it a go. A go for Hart? That meant a team-high 14 rebounds in simply 19 minutes for a 6-5 ahead throughout New York’s 105–95 win over Boston. The one gamers to file no less than 14 rebounds in 20 or fewer minutes this decade have been facilities standing 6-10 or taller.
“I knew [my] offense was gonna be a little shaky. First game back, so I had to do something to help this team,” he joked after the sport. “It felt really good out there, to get up and down. I’m happy we got the win. And then continue building off of it.”
Josh Hart of the New York Knicks drives towards the Boston Celtics through the second quarter at Madison Sq. Backyard on October 24, 2025 in New York Metropolis. (Photograph by Al Bello/Getty Photos)
Hart’s learn was proper. His offense confirmed some rust — and his conditioning wasn’t far behind. By the top of his stint, the NBA’s minutes chief from final season was gassed. The proof got here late: a wide-open nook three that missed all the things. Had he had something left, Hart mentioned he would possibly’ve gone for rebound No. 15.
“Hell no [I couldn’t grab another rebound], bruh. You see that last three? My legs was gone, bro,” he laughed. “It didn’t even get to the rim. I don’t even know if it got to the paint. My legs was gone today, man, so [I decided] I’ll help y’all and get some rebounds for the team.”
Regardless of coming off the bench this season, Hart stays one of many Knicks’ most important items. Head coach Mike Brown made it clear after the sport how impactful Hart’s return already is.
“[For him] to have the game that he had in that short amount of time was phenomenal to watch,” Brown mentioned. “It adds to our team, it adds to the versatility of our team. It adds to the defensive end of the floor when it comes to us guarding and being able to do a lot of different things. So I was excited to see Josh out there.”
Hart missed most of coaching camp and preseason because the Knicks applied Brown’s new up-tempo, ball-moving offense. However the model suits him completely: a high-energy connector who thrives in chaos and transition. He’s assured he’ll catch up rapidly by means of stay motion.
“Just being attentive to what they were doing [in practice]. Obviously, it’s gonna be a little bit of a learning curve not having the game reps,” Hart mentioned. “Clearly I can undergo follow and all that however recreation reps are totally different. So it’s gonna take a little bit little bit of adjusting for everyone, however I felt prefer it was a stable first recreation.
“Unfortunately, in my career, I’ve had a lot of turnover at coach. This is my ninth year. I think [Mike] is my seventh coach. So I’ve had a lot of experience in adapting to different philosophies and stuff like that. So I’ve come in with my own blank canvass and just kinda let him instill his philosophies and all that and just build off of that.”
Hart gave the Knicks lots to construct off. His fearless, all-effort model blends seamlessly into Brown’s pace-and-space assault. However he’ll stay on harm watch. Decrease backs are unpredictable, and his surgically repaired proper ring finger would require one other operation subsequent summer season.
“It’s tough ‘cause you don’t really know how [the back will] respond until you put it to the test,” he mentioned. “My finger’s still messed up. It’s still chopped. It kinda just is what it is at this point. Down the line, hopefully this offseason I’ll get it fixed but until then we’re just gonna rock with it.”
The Knicks will take what they’ll get — they usually know if Hart’s in uniform, they’ll get all the things he has.
Whereas Brown was amazed at 14 rebounds in 19 minutes, one thing he mentioned he hadn’t seen earlier than, Karl-Anthony Cities wasn’t shocked within the slightest.
“I am not [surprised]. That’s what he does,” Cities mentioned. “He impacts the game with his energy and his competitiveness. It changes the game every time.”
