The Josh Hart Conundrum Facing The Knicks

The New York Knicks' starting five is a polarizing topic when it comes to Mike Brown's 40-23 ball club. You’re either pro five-out and obsessed with the data going back to last year, or in denial about the ceiling of the fivesome of Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart.

In 367 minutes together this season, the group has a respectable +5.1 net rating, per NBA.com. But there are too many games that the starters dig a hole that other lineups need to dig out of. The eye test and numbers against the cream of the crop is not good enough. Neither is the track record dating back to last season.

During the 2024-25 regular season, Tom Thibodeau played that unit as much as any in the league. In 940 minutes, they had just a +3.3 net rating, courtesy of NBA.com. They posted a -1.5 net rating in 379 minutes after January 1, which was the second worst mark in the league among groups that played more than 250 minutes together during that span, according to Esfandiar Baraheni of the Athletic. That number was an unsightly -6.2 differential in 335 playoff minutes.

Mountains of Data Suggest The Starting Five Could Use A Change

Thibodeau rode those five until finally shaking things up in the middle of the Eastern Conference Finals. Many argued that the fall off was due to heavy minute loads running the group into the ground. However, the dip coincided with opposing teams guarding Hart with their center to cramp spacing.

Big men for other team's park in the paint and play 15 feet off Hart. His hesitancy on the perimeter means Brunson can't effectively penetrate, and Town's can't get open 3's or post up because he's guarded by a smaller and quicker defender who has inside help. Additionally, the cutting lanes are clogged for Anunoby and Bridges.

The offense often times is choking thanks to Hart halting the second action in many of the team’s sets. Despite nerve damage in his shooting hand, the six-foot-five swingman is shooting a very respectable 37.8% from long distance on 3.8 attempts per game. Just earlier this week, Zach Lowe of the Ringer referenced what an opposing coach said to him about the ignore/guard him with your center Hart strategy.

“Josh Hart feels like he solved that one," Lowe said he was told. "He’s hurt a lot of teams by hitting open threes.”

Feb 6, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Knicks guard Josh Hart (3) dribbles in the first half against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

But during the last nine games, Hart has connected on seven shots from long distance in 32 attempts. In the seven most recent games New York played top four seeds, the starting lineup has shared the court for 94 minutes and they are -42. They have an offensive rating of 94 and a defensive rating of 119. The Knicks are still 4-3 in those games and it's not a huge sample size.

Against San Antonio, the Spurs dared to let Hart shoot. He bricked all five shots he took in the first-half. Brown tweaked the second-half game plan by deploying him as a baseline cutter, short roll screener and in the dunker spot. New York won 114-89, yet the five posted a -30.5 net rating in 13 minutes.

In the loss against Oklahoma City, the Knicks outscored the defending champions by 12 points in the 31 minutes Landry Shamet was on the court. The sharpshooter didn’t make a single three-pointer, but that number speaks volumes about the power of spacing. However, in 83 minutes with Shamet in place of Hart alongside the starters, the group has a -0.1 net rating.

The Lineup Deficencies Have Been Exposed Against The Elite

After leading the league in minutes per game last season (37.6), Hart was handed a sixth-man role in favor of Mitchell Robinson during the preseason and began the year in a reserve role. It didn't help that the 30-year old missed most of the preseason with lumbar spasms and offseason surgery on his ring finger didn’t work. He was benched in the fourth quarter for multiple games in November and was noticeably unhappy in his new niche.

With the team sputtering and Anunoby on the shelf, Brown reinserted the team's emotional leader into the starting lineup. The Knicks won ten of 11 games, and he's been in that role ever since. Hart brings value as a connector, defensive irritant and downhill playmaker. He also brings an intangible aspect that analytics ignore.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Right? This is no knock on Hart. It's about maximizing stylistic fit. His role shouldn't be determined by politics or ego. The Knicks don’t need less of their Hart and Soul. They just need him in a different role.

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