Skip to main content
All Knicks

Josh Hart's Missed Layup Might Be Felt by Knicks Beyond Game 4

Isaiah De Los Santos|
Josh Hart's botched layup might not go away after Game 4.
Josh Hart's botched layup might not go away after Game 4. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

In this story:

New York Knicks

Josh Hart is likely waking up on Thursday with bittersweet feelings. Yes, the Knicks captured a momentous win in Game 4 and have a 3-1 series lead, but that nearly wasn't the case after his shocking missed layup with just under two minutes left.

Even worse, his errant shot clearly affected him down the stretch of that game, which almost cost New York as well. Now, his play late in the fourth quarter has created some legitimate concerns about the wing as the Knicks look to get the final win to clinch the title.

Knicks, Josh Hart could suffer real after-effects from his botched Game 4 layup

In a sport where even the best don't make half their shots, being able to shake off a miss and move on to the next play is essential. However, some sting more than others under certain circumstances, such as Hart's in the middle of an improbable comeback.

The toll this took on him was apparent in the immediate aftermath. On the ensuing Spurs possession, after Victor Wembanyama was fouled, Hart looked utterly dejected as he fell on the floor and merely hung his head—a tell-tale sign of a player losing confidence.

Hart, with his mind likely still lingering on his miss, also saw his dependable execution slip in the most important moments of the game. With under 40 seconds left, the usually elite rebounder was ball-watching on De'Aaron Fox's midrange miss.

This gave Stephon Castle a clear path to the rim as he grabbed an offensive rebound. Caught sleeping, Hart scrambled for the ball haphazardly and fouled Castle, who nailed both free throws to give the Spurs what could've been a decisive 106-105 lead.

Even on the final play of the game, Hart again was at the center of a lapse. Guarding Castle on the inbound, Hart lost his body control while being screened by Wembanyama and let San Antonio's guard get another free lane to the hoop. Yes, Wemby did extend his arms in an uncalled illegal pick, but Hart is fully aware at this point of how much the big man bends the rules, and him sticking to Castle was non-negotiable.

If Karl-Anthony Towns doesn't tip the inbound pass, the lasting image from this game very well could be Castle dunking or tipping the ball in for the win—with Hart left in the dust.

These are massive slip-ups in the moment that could've doomed New York, and there's no guarantee he'll improve mentally in Game 5.

After all, the stakes will only be higher on Saturday with a title on the line. That's going to make every play carry more weight, yet Hart crumbled under similar conditions on Wednesday.

Confidence is a real factor in basketball. The Knicks have seen it in these playoffs. For example, Landry Shamet went ice-cold and stumbled in the first round before catching fire and even changing the NBA Finals early on. He's since fallen back into a slump, as his poor shooting is also affecting his defense as of late, which is another concern since he was able to fill in for Hart to start this series.

Hart is similarly mercurial, with his shooting sometimes being strong, even great, and other times being so bad that it gets in the way of New York winning games. A mistake like this, on this kind of stage, likely isn't going to make him feel good taking shots in Game 5, especially since each one will feel like a bigger one than normal.

There's also the execution side to worry about. Should his offensive struggles continue, he needs to make up for that lack of offense in other ways, like rebounding well and playing strong defense. Yet those are two things highlighted above that he also struggled with while in his head about the miss.

Even in his postgame comments, Hart hinted he wouldn't get over this miss. He notably said OG Anunoby saved him "at least for this game, a lifetime of regret," which is him admitting it's going to remain on his mind despite it not ultimately deciding Game 4.

While New York has the leadership to help Hart during this time, it's going to come down to him to either move past this or dwell on it. Unfortunately for the Knicks, the consequences of the latter route are apparent and a legitimate possibility as they try to close things out.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Loading recommendations... Please wait while we load personalized content recommendations

Published
Isaiah De Los Santos
ISAIAH DE LOS SANTOS

Isaiah De Los Santos has been in sports media for 10 years, most recently joining OnSI to cover the New York Knicks, New York Jets and New York Yankees. Previous stops for Isaiah include FanSided, SB Nation and SLAM.