How Josh Hart could take Knicks’ offense from really good to great

The New York Knicks’ offense should be able to roll out of bed and be really good.

Jalen Brunson with spacing? Karl-Anthony Towns as his primary pick-and-pop and pick-and-roll threat? Two wings in Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby who shoot the leather off the ball and can turn defense into easy offense? This team is built to be tremendous from the start.

But then there’s Josh Hart, who could take this Knicks offense to another level. Hart’s intangibles alone make him the connector of this starting unit. He understands how to find space in a defense without having the ball, creating advantages and collapsing defenses in the process. He’s an underrated passer, one who tends to always find the open man the minute he’s open. In transition, Hart’s kick-ahead passes are some of the best in the league.

With all of the options around him this season, it may take Hart some adjusting to find his footing in this offense. However, once he does, the Knicks’ starting offense might be as deadly of a bunch as there is in the NBA.

“The scoring aspect will have to sacrifice — I mean the last couple of games I got like two shots,” Hart said last week. “That’s something I’m going to have to sacrifice. It’ll be a little different role. Last year, especially at certain times, when I had certain guards on me, it would be pick-and-rolls and putting those guys in actions. I would be in the short pocket and make those kinds of decisions. That’s probably something I won’t be doing too much this year.

“Right now, it’s just focusing on defending, rebounding, pushing it in the fast break and trying to get those guys easier looks and find those guys when they’re open and rock with that.”

Hart is underselling himself a bit. There is more he can bring to the Knicks’ offense and has in the preseason so far, particularly as a cutter.

It sounds elementary, but many NBA players aren’t good at moving without the ball, at finding holes in the defense. In this isolation and pick-and-roll world that we now live in, a lot of off-ball players find themselves standing on the perimeter and ball-watching. That’s not Hart. He’s a good mover without the ball in his hands, and it opens up great shots for his teammates. If the NBA recorded hockey assists, Hart may be amongst the league leaders. His impact on an offense doesn’t always show up in the box score.

It’s an element of his game in which he takes pride.

“I think, I don’t know, cutting and making the open layup is, in today’s league, boring,” Hart said. “Everyone wants to do the isolations, stepback jumpers and get their bounce-rhythm dribbles and iso. So, I think some of the fundamentals and beauty of the game — passing, cutting and moving — are lost. You still have teams like Golden State and Steph Curry who do a great job cutting, but you have other teams where it’s just really focusing on the ball screen and everyone staying spaced. They don’t even want them to cut because then they’re cutting into some of the players.

“For me, it’s a feel. If you see the back of your defenders head, try to make a cut behind them or a face cut. People aren’t doing it that much because it’s not the ‘sexy’ play.”

This play from New York’s first preseason game is the perfect example of how Hart can not only propel an already dangerous offense, but also serve as the connector because of his movements and IQ.

A two-man game between Brunson and Towns gets a favorable switch for the big man in the post. However, Charlotte center Taj Gibson is guarding Hart and playing off of him, likely due to Hart’s shooting struggles. Gibson sees that Brandon Miller needs help and cheats over to crowd Towns as he looks to score.

Many players in Hart’s position on this play would just stay stagnant and call for the ball on the perimeter. Hart doesn’t. He makes Gibson pay for cheating off of him and cuts across the lane to give Towns a passing outlet. Not only does Hart recognize that he’s a free man on this possession, but also he recognizes that his cut forces Hornets guard Tre Mann, who is all alone guarding two players because Gibson is helping Miller, to collapse in as well to try to negate a layup from Hart. Upon receiving the pass from Towns, Hart knows immediately that Mann’s collapse leaves Anunoby wide open in the corner and he makes a tremendous, spinning pass to get him the ball.

Now, the play ends in Miles Bridges fouling Anunoby, which is a positive result. However, Anunoby probably should have immediately swung the ball to Mikal Bridges on the wing upon receiving the pass because Hart’s cut created an advantage for the offense and had the defense scrambling. Mikal Bridges would have stepped into a wide-open 3 had Anunoby swung it immediately.

The moral of the story, though, is that Hart created a very advantageous opportunity for the half-court offense by cutting, collapsing the defense and finding an open man. And with a ton of successful shooters around him in the starting group, plays like this from Hart could take New York’s offense to another level.

There is nothing particularly grand about the play above, but it’s the subtle things Hart does, his IQ, that creates good opportunities for teammates.

At the beginning of this clip, you can see that Brunson’s dribble-drive attracts three bodies on him with Gibson in drop coverage. However, Hart recognizes that his spacing and proximity to Towns allows Mann to guard both him and Towns at the same time. So Hart immediately cuts to the basket, forcing Mann to follow him so that the Knicks don’t get a layup. Brunson’s attack collapses the defense partially and then Hart’s cut collapses it all the way. Hart’s movement opens up a safety valve for Brunson and allows Towns to step into a clean 3-point attempt.

A lot of players would have just been stationary while Brunson did his thing, allowing one defender to guard two offensive players. With Hart, it truly is the little things.

“It’s huge,” New York head coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Being decisive and cutting hard is an act of unselfishness. It’s prioritizing winning. If you cut and you’re open, you should get the ball. But even if you cut with force and make the defense react to that, it’s going to open up other things and you’re going to create good offense for your teammates. And that’s what winning is about.”

No one has ever questioned if Hart is a winner. However, people tend to recognize that label because he defends hard and rebounds like he’s a 7-footer. Those things play a huge part in him being a winner, of course. But it’s his hard cuts that make him a winner, too. It’s his subtle cuts to create an opportunity for someone else that does, as well. It’s also his ability to make the right read at the right time.

Hart getting his 3-point percentage back to where it was prior to last season would benefit him and the Knicks tremendously. Yet, he’s shown many times throughout his career — and even in this preseason — that, even without his shot falling, he can make defenders pay for playing off of him. That’s a skill in itself.

A fan’s eye isn’t always trained to see the subtleties he provides night in and night out. Coaches and players see it, though, because it makes their life easier. That’s why Hart always plays a big role wherever he’s at on the court. His game is always about the team.

(Photo: Jesse D. Garrabrant / NBAE via Getty Images)