Knicks Lose Josh Hart, Win vs. 76ers in Abu Dhabi Debut

Stationed eight hours ahead in Abu Dhabi, the New York Knicks gave their fans a bit of a power lunch to unofficially open this new season.

New York handled business in part one of the two-stage Abu Dhabi Games, downing the Philadelphia 76ers by a 99-84 final in the first game of the 2025-26 NBA preseason at Etihad Arena. All 19 available Knicks partook in the exhibition, the group paced by 12 points from Miles McBride and 16 rebounds from Mitchell Robinson.

It was a bit of a painful victory for the Knicks (1-0), who engaged in their first overseas exhibition game since 2010: the team already went without OG Anunoby, who is day-to-day with a hand injury, and lost Josh Hart during first half action when he appeared to endured a lower-body ailment while going after a rebound of a Johni Broome in the second period.

Whether the injury removed Hart from the game entirely was rendered moot by the fact that he was ejected from the game after throwing the ball away in frustration after the incident. Hart, already playing with a splint on his finger due to a prior injury, had three rebounds, two points, and a steal in seven minutes prior to his departure.

The metropolitan focus no doubt centered on how Knicks head coach Mike Brown would employ his rotation, especially in the early going. With Hart lost and Anunoby sidelined, New York played 10 men for at least six minutes in the opening half and went with the starting five featuring dueling big men Mitchell Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns. Pacome Dadiet, 2024's first-round pick, joined regular marquee men Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson in the first five.

While Dadiet struggled (1-of-6 from the field, two turnovers in just under 14 minutes), Robinson and Towns took advantage of frigid Philadelphia preseason shooting: Robinson needed only 18 minutes to secure his massive rebound tally while Towns led starters with 11 points. The score was tied after the first but the Knicks pulled away to take a 10-point lead thanks to a 13-6 run over the final five-plus minutes. Bridges was responsible for eight points in that stretch, five earned off two steals.

From there, deeper reserves took over the second half and officially put the game out of reach with an 18-5 tally at the end of the third. That tally featured the first unofficial points in blue for Malcolm Brogdon, which was followed by a trio of triples for Garrison Mathews.

Philadelphia (0-1), playing without star attractions Joel Embiid and Paul George, was paced by 14 points each for Tyrese Maxey and rookie VJ Edgecombe, the latter making his unofficial NBA debut after the Sixers made him the third overall pick of the most recent draft. Despite leading all scorers, they united to hit just one of 10 three-point tries, part of a brutal showing that saw the Sixers hit 3-of-35 overall.

The Knicks will play the second half of their Abu Dhabi doubleheader on Saturday, also against the Sixers (11 a.m. ET, MSG/NBA TV).

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