Despite playing without Karl-Anthony Towns, the New York Knicks managed to take down Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers. A big reason for that was the play from Josh Hart, who finished with a triple-double with 10 points, 17 rebounds, and 12 assists.
Josh Hart gets high praise from Tyrese Maxey
His energy on the glass was critical without their top rebounder in Towns. Hart’s special season continued as he helped claw the Knicks to a huge win in overtime.
Following the game, Maxey took the time to give Hart his respect for the energy he provided on both ends of the floor.
“He impacts the game man…It’s crazy, I had no clue he had a triple-double…17 rebounds––nobody else on their team had double digits…You get the ball out of Brunson’s hand & if it’s him he’s gonna make the right play every single time almost,” Maxey said (h/t New York Basketball on X).
Maxey had a solid game after a slow start, as he finished with 33 points, six rebounds, and six assists. He scored 27 of his points in the second half plus overtime and hit several clutch shots to claw the 76ers back from a double-digit deficit.
Hart has become a very valuable player for the Knicks
Knicks fans are very familiar with Maxey and his maturity from last year’s playoffs. Maxey was a dominant player during their first-round playoff series and gave New York credit for the way they played to defeat Philadelphia in six games.
Hart was a key part of that series as well, as he averaged 16.8 points and 12.3 rebounds in that series. He also hit the clutch three-point shot in the closing seconds of Game 6 to ultimately seal Philadelphia’s fate.
Since then, Hart has become one of the most valuable players on the Knicks, and he put that on full display Wednesday night in Philadelphia. New York will now head back home to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.