Miles McBride won’t be the only New York Knicks player whose role could see a considerable shift next season. Knicks star Josh Hart could also be in line to contribute in a new capacity for the Knicks in 2024-25. Hart was a cornerstone of the Knicks’ operation in 2023-24 amid the storm of injuries they had to weather post-All-Star break.
All-Star Julius Randle went down on Jan. 27 against the Miami Heat with a dislocated shoulder and the Villanova product spelled for him and the injured OG Anunoby after the latter went down with an elbow injury in that same game and only played nine games the rest of the way. In the process, Hart re-asserted himself as arguably the best undersized rebounder in the NBA.
How Hart can help the Knicks thrive even more in 2024-25
The Knicks’ bench unit finished No. 3 among all second units with a 52.3 percent rebounding percentage last time out. However, they finished No. 24 overall in offensive rating (52.9) and No. 13 overall in pace (203.81) on the previous campaign.
Conversely, they were No. 1 as a team in rebounding percentage (52.7 percent) and No. 7 as a collective in offensive rating (117.3), but dead last in pace (95.96). The common denominators are their nearly unparalleled dominance on the glass and their need for speed getting up and down the floor. Where Hart can make a direct impact outside of those two areas is in their overall offensive scheme.
The 29-year-old flirted with a career-high in assists in 2023-24 with 4.1 APG. Albeit, his shooting peripherals plummeted to 43.4 percent from the field and 31 percent from three-point range, the former of which being his worst connect rate since 2019-20 and the latter of which marked his career-low.
It has been reported that Hart has been in the gym with his trusted shooting coach Mark Ramljak to improve his outside shot this summer. Ramljak helped Hart shoot 16-37 from deep in the Knicks’ 2024 Eastern Conference first-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers after the two linked up ahead of the six-game affair to clean up his mechanics. The expectation is that guidance from his long-time trainer will render the same effect to kick off the 2024-25 campaign.
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How much of a difference can Hart make for the Knicks next season?
Hart’s incredible rebounding will pay the most dividends for the Knicks in the upcoming campaign. Having averaged 8.3 boards per night in 2023-24, the 6-4 wing’s ability to create second-chance opportunities will go a long way for the Knicks throughout their regular season and hopeful playoff slate, as it did in Game 1 of their 2024 Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Indiana Pacers, as the NBA shared on X:
Right behind that will be his importance as a secondary playmaker in transition and in pick-and-roll situations. With a 14.0 percent rebounding percentage from a year ago, the Maryland native will likely take the initiative in pushing the ball in transition off of missed shots as per usual. His fast tempo will benefit teammates Donte DiVincenzo and Miles McBride, who will likely leak out on the break and be ready to gun from outside.
Also, when defenses trap All-Star Jalen Brunson in the screen-and-roll and take away their rim-runners in the passing lanes, Hart will be a valued option to kick to in the middle of the floor, where he will be able to make reads at his discretion, either to finish at the rim or draw interior defenses out further and find open men in the corners or on the wings.
There won’t be many new areas that New York will need Hart to evolve in next season, though that won’t be discouraged. Albeit, if he can rebound, facilitate, and improve his shooting, he’ll maximize his value as their seventh man.
It must be said that the Knicks’ addition of his former Villanova teammate Mikal Bridges will likely see coach Thibodeau experiment with lineups where the latter plays the three and spells for starting small forward OG Anunoby, which will eat into the 33.4 nightly minutes that Hart saw last season.
That, and the health of Anunoby and All-Star power forward Julius Randle will also likely factor into Hart’s minutes decreasing below the 30-minute marker in 2024-25. It will be the quality of his play that outshines the quantity of his minutes played, or the counting stats he accumulates next time out, though.
