Magic Johnson Had One Piece of Lineup Advice for the Knicks Ahead of ECF Game 5

Johnson weighed in with his usual social media post.

Magic Johnson on February 20, 2022. / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Magic Johnson dispensed some free advice for the New York Knicks and head coach Tom Thibodeau with a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday night, advising the team to make a certain lineup change ahead of Game 5 of their Eastern Conference finals series vs. the Indiana Pacers.

The Knicks are down 3-1 heading into Thursday's contest, meaning they'll be eliminated if they don't force a Game 6. And to do so, Johnson thinks they need to put Josh Hart back into the starting five.

"A message to the New York Knicks: Go back to what got you to the Eastern Conference Finals," Johnson wrote in his post. "That's having Josh Hart in the starting lineup."

The Knicks replaced Hart with center Mitchell Robinson in Game 3 of the series, and were rewarded for the risk: they won that contest 106-100. But they did the same thing in Game 4, and still lost 121-130.

Johnson clearly thinks Hart is the weapon the Knicks need to stay alive. But we'll see if they heed his advice come gametime—as of 1 p.m. ET, Robinson was still listed in New York's starting five.

---

More NBA Playoffs on Sports Illustrated

feed