The Knicks have won the championship with a 94-90 win last night in Game 5 that saw Jalen Brunson crowned as the Finals MVP. But even Brunson would admit that none of it would be possible without the things that Josh Hart brings to the court.
Following the game last night, Josh Hart spoke to Monica McNutt courtside and addressed the sacrifices he made to reach this level with the Knicks.
“Everybody wants to be the guy that scores the most, that puts the ball in the basket, and that’s not everybody’s path,” said Hart.
“That wasn’t my path, and sometimes that’s a tough pill to swallow, but when you embrace that, when you’re a star in your role, and you take pride in doing the little things, that breeds winning basketball.”
“For me, as embraced as I was in this city wearing this jersey, that sacrifice was easy. Some days it was tough, don’t get me wrong, but you sacrifice for moments like this.”
Hart further spoke about the pressure that comes with the weight of the jersey on the players’ shoulders at his postgame press conference.
“Man, this is the best feeling, man. We worked so hard for this. I give glory to God. Everyone was doubted at some point. This team was doubted at some point. And all we focused on was the next game. All we focused on were those guys in the locker room, man.”
“People don’t understand, you know, we don’t really talk about it, but the weight of that jersey, the expectations, the pressure of that jersey. And I guess today, right now, it’s the lightest I’ve ever felt. And all glory to God, man.”
Hart finished Game 5 with 13 points, 11 rebounds, and two assists while going 4-11 from the field (36.4 FG%) and 3-6 from beyond the arc (50.0 3P%). He ended the Finals averaging 7.6 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 4.6 assists while going 38.2% from the field and 40.0% from behind the three-point line.
While Hart’s numbers clearly reflect that he’s not the score-first type of player, he does all the little things around the court that culminate in creating a winning basketball culture, like fighting for the loose ball, pestering defense, and forcing turnovers by clogging the passing lanes. These don’t usually reflect on the basic box score and thus can be missed by those who do not watch the game.
So just as Hart said, he’s now sacrificed on the idea of being a score-first player to cement himself as a star defensive player without whom the Knicks would arguably not have won this championship. Hence, this shows that even embracing being a ‘role player’ can pave your path to stardom.
