Underrated Athlete Josh Hart

Joshua Zimmerman

Josh Hart The Hero That Does Not Wear A Cape

Over the last 2 years only 2 NBA players have grabbed more than 1,500 rebounds, 500 assists, and 200 steals. (Knicks Centric). Those 2 players are 4 time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and Josh Hart. How is that possible? You would think anybody in the same sentence as Jokic would have to be at least an All-Star.  Well, what Josh Hart has shown is that his stats are a lot better than people think. He is also a consistent winner who plays at maximum effort. 

Getting A Chance 

Hart was traded 2 times throughout the start of his career. Being on the opposite end of trades that sent Anthony Davis to the Lakers and Cj Mccolum to the Pelicans.  He only started 65 times in his first 4 seasons in the league while playing in 242 games. Finally, when he got the chance to start in his 5th year, Hart averaged a career high 15 Pts, 4 AST, and 7 Reb. (Traded midseason, combined from time in New Orleans and Portland). On Feb 9th a little over 2 years ago the Knicks prioritized trading for him. Trading away Cam Reddish, Svi Mykhailiuk, and a 1st round pick. Talk about being wanted for once. The Knicks did it with the hope of getting a spark plug to come off the bench but you can make the case that he’s been much more than that. 

Finding His Role 

Hart rode the bench his first 25 games with the Knicks only starting once. It wasn’t until Julius Randle got hurt in mid-January of last year that Hart got to start full time and fully break out.  Starting in the playoffs he averaged 11.5 rebounds per game, the 4th most by any player in the playoffs. Along with pulling in 150 rebounds, the 6th most by any player who was in the playoffs. That number of rebounds is more than 7 ft All star centers Rudy Gobert and Karl Anthony Towns who played 7 more games than him. He was the Knicks leading rebounder during that run at 6”4, and the only player in the top 25 under 6”8. He was also number 1 in minutes averaging 42.2 among players that played 10 or more playoff games. That’s crazy. To get that amount of rebounds and to play almost  the whole game is unheard of. While his other playoff stats aren’t top 5 worthy 14.5 pts, 2.2 AST,1.0 Stl. In 13 games he had 4 games with over 20 pts and 8 with over 15.  The amount of rebounds he got and hustle he gave was more than any other team got out of their small guard or any guard. Hart’s play  helped get the Knicks to the end of the 2nd round despite 5 injuries. 

The Third Best Player On The Knicks 

This season Hart has taken the rest of his game to the next level. He’s averaging a career high 5.7 ast, 9 .6 Reb, and 1.5 Stl. Hart’s assists and rebounds on the team is behind either Jalen Brunson or Karl Anthony Towns. While being 1st in steals, Hart clearly is the Knicks 2nd best playmaker, even though he is only averaging 14.5 pts. He’s been a really efficient scorer shooting over 55% from the field on about 10 shots per game. Hart is also averaging a career high 37.6 min which is 3rd in the NBA. On top of that Hart guards anything from point guards to power forwards and is the one of  teams most versatile defenders. The craziest stat though is that he has had 13 triple doubles since joining the Knicks which is 4th all time for any player to wear a Knicks uniform behind only Walt Frazier, Micheal Ray Richardson, and Richie Guerin. 

Glue Guy With The All Stars 

Hart’s career high 79 Stl is 7th in the NBA. His 9.6 Reb per game  is 1st among Small Guards and 17th in the NBA. He is the only player under 6”10 to be in the top 20. His 7 triple doubles this season is also 5th in the league while being one of only 6 players to have more than 5. Most of the players in these stats are All-Stars but let’s keep going. In a stat called Lebron which measures a player’s wins above replacement to their team based on impact.  Hart is 9th in the NBA! To put that in perspective the rest of the guys in the top 10 are all All-Stars this season. That’s insane! A so-called role player impacts the game at the same level or better than the NBA’s All-Stars.

It’s time people start recognizing and value Josh Hart for what he’s worth. A high end starter or borderline All-Star on a championship contender. He does so much for his team that people don’t see and brings a unique value to the small guard position more than anybody in the NBA. Hopefully, he will win an award this season and get the recognition he deserves.