NBA
Jalen Brunson Offers Josh Hart Injury Game 7 Guess
Will Josh Hart have the heart to overcome an unusual injury and partake in the New York Knicks’ fateful Game 7 against the Indiana Pacers? One of those who know him the best says yes.
Hart is listed as questionable for Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC) after enduring an abdominal strain that forced him to leave the prior contest in Indianapolis. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski has offered hope of Hart’s participation … as well as the promise of lasting pain … on Saturday and Brunson briefly became an insider when he too was questioned about his teammate’s status.
“I would assume he’s playing,” Brunson declared in video from SNY. “It’s Game 7.”
If anyone would know Hart’s heart, it’s Brunson, his long-tenured teammate in both Manhattan and Villanova. The two collaborated on a collegiate national championship at Villanova in 2016 and their respective arrivals have revolutionized Knicks basketball, to the point where the team sits on the edge of its first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 2000.
Taking that final step, however, will require the Knicks to overcome a plethora of injuries that have plagued them throughout the season. The ailments also include the hamstring of OG Anunoby (likewise listed as questionable for Sunday) and the season-ending issues of Bojan Bogdanovic, Julius Randle, and Mitchell Robinson.
“A lot of things, physically, with our team didn’t go our way this year,” Brunson said in video from SNY. “But I think our main focus is that whoever we have out there, regardless of what you’re dealing with or anything, if you’re out there, you’re ready to go. That’s just been our mindset.”
“No matter what the situation is, we’re going to have each other’s backs.