There are so many good teams in the NBA today. But a true measure of their championship conquest is how they play against another contender. For the New York Knicks, they hold a strong foothold as the third seed in the East However, against the top three teams in the NBA, they haven’t registered a single win in seven games. The team’s energizer Josh Hart believes there’s only two directions the team can go from here.
The Knicks’ captain Jalen Brunson isn’t happy with their performance against the top sides. In back-to-back games, they lost to the Cavaliers by over 30 points and then a close fight against the Celtics. “Hors***t” is how he describes the Knicks’ performances. But his best friend and teammate sees a bright side.
Hart is against going through the struggle. What matters is how the Knicks process the same. “I think it could be taken two ways. It can be extremely beneficial because it could put you in a position of being humbled and realizing like we have a lot of room to grow you know if we want to compete with these guys and in this team. Or you know it could kind of break teams and you think like oh we’re not as good as these people or all these teams,” Hart said.
Dec 28, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) talks with Knicks guard Josh Hart (3) during a stoppage in play against the Washington Wizards in overtime at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Personally, Josh Hart is confident with the Knicks being in the ‘humbling’ zone. The forward is confident when it comes to the players and their ability to compete against elite teams. “We got to go out there and we got to put forth the effort every game and every possession and not concede easy baskets or you know start the game off slow or anything like that. We got to start pushing ourselves to the limit on both ends of the Court um which is why I’m not really panicking with that stat,” he revealed on the Roommates Show.
Jalen Brunson is also in agreement. However, he does think there’s something worse than the preposterous record. “Like the amount of times we’ve been like embarrassed on National Television, I mean that should that should ring a bell that should be like a wakeup call in itself not just for those games just like for the rest of the season,” Brunson says.
They did come close against the Celtics. Speaking of the reigning champions, Josh Hart had something to clear out with them too.
Can’t stay hung up on the Celtics
Prior to their third game against the Celtics, the reporters were curious. They wanted to know how the Knicks dealt with their previous losses to the team. It was two double-digit losses after all. However, Hart’s reaction caught them off guard. “We’re not really worried about those past games, nothing we can really do to get it back. Gotta make sure we lock in on the scouting report and execute,” he said.
The comment was misinterpreted by many. Hart wasn’t trying to say they don’t see the Celtics to be a team to take down. Given the standings, a collision is likely. However, the former Villanova product doesn’t want to risk “complacency” by putting their sole focus on beating on team.
“I’m not sitting there like oh we have to beat these guys like we have to I want to be where they are. No. I want us to be the best team we can be and I and that team can compete with those guys 100% but I’m not obsessed with the fascination of we have to close a gap on the Boston Celtics,” Hart explained.
What he wants to avoid is getting obsessed with the prospect of beating the Shamrocks. He feels having that mentality could hold the Knicks back from achieving their full potential if they do beat the Celtics. It does make some sense. Testing yourself, especially in the playoffs requires regular adjustment.
But above all, the deeper you go into the postseason, the stronger willpower is necessary. It’s going to be one challenge after another. Hence, if they set their goals to beat the Celtics, it could possibly compromise their ability to respect the teams they could face further on. From a championship perspective, viewing each team as mere rivals and studying them thoroughly is what gets the job done.
Hart just wants to implement that atmosphere within the Knicks. There doesn’t seem to be much wrong with that at all.
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