Knicks’ Josh Hart (lower back contusion) available vs. Hawks: ‘I’m always questionable’

ATLANTA — A lower back injury wasn’t going to keep Knicks forward Josh Hart off the court for Game 6.

The Knicks downgraded Hart to questionable on Wednesday after he left Game 5 with what the team called a lower back contusion with five minutes left in regulation on Tuesday.

Ahead of tipoff against the Hawks in Game 6 on Thursday, head coach Mike Brown said Hart would be available to play in a closeout game on the road.

“I’m always questionable depending on how my body feels,” Hart said at his locker ahead of tipoff on Thursday.

“It was the back kind of locked up and then it went down to my hip, so that kind of happened the first quarter [of Game 5].

And then I tried to play through it the second quarter, and then at halftime it got a little tighter.

I couldn’t really move too much.”
Hart received treatment on his lower back before the Knicks ruled him available to play.

The injury was concerning given Hart endured a bout with lower back spasms during the Knicks’ preseason opener in Abu Dhabi in October.

Those back spasms sidelined him for three weeks, causing Hart to miss the Oct.

22 regular-season opener against the Cleveland Cavalier.

He made his season debut the following game against the Boston Celtics on Oct.

24.

Hart has been a linchpin to the Knicks’ success this season, particularly this playoff series, where he’s assumed a variety of roles on the defensive end.

Hart has largely defended either Hawks’ All-Star forward Jalen Johnson or starting guard C.J.

McCollum.

McCollum scored just six points on 3-of-10 shooting from the field in Game 5 at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.

“His versatility is huge whether it’s offensively or defensively.

Offensively, he pushes the basketball.

He helps us play faster.

Defensively, he gives us versatility,” Brown said of Hart an hour-and-change before tipoff.

“You can move him around because of how strong he is and the feel he has on that end of the floor.

And then because of his ability to rebound, if you want to cross match and put a smaller guy on him, he can impact the game by hitting the glass.”
Hart, who averaged 12 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists during the regular season, is averaging 9.4 points, 10 rebound and 4.8 assists in the first round against the Hawks.

His 3-point shooting has fallen off, from a career-high 41% in the regular season to just 15.8% through the first five games of the playoffs.

The Knicks, however, need him most for the defensive edge and the pace he brings on the offensive side of the ball.

At 6-foot-5, Hart tends to be the Knicks’ most physical defender not named backup center Mitchell Robinson.

“It’s what you look for to have guys that are all 6-8, 6-9, tough and can all bring a lot of things to the table for you,” said Brown.

“Josh might disagree with his size so he might not be 6-8 or 6-9 but with his strength and toughness, he’s talented physically and he plays the right way, so he gives you those things, even though he is 6-foot-5.”
Had the Knicks ruled Hart out for Thursday, Brown could have turned to Landry Shamet or Miles McBride as a fill-in starter.

McBride shot 0-of-4 from the field and did not score in the Knicks’ Game 5 rout of the Hawks on Tuesday but scored 11 points in Game 4 and 15 points in Game 3.