The New York Knicks have been experimenting with lineups much more this season than last year. Head coach Mike Brown has experimented with various lineups to determine which groups work best.
Knicks’ Josh Hart shined in the start on Wednesday
On Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets, he gave Miles McBride and Josh Hart the starting nod for the second game in a row, moving Mitchell Robinson to the bench. The move paid off, as New York had an offensive explosion en route to a dominant road victory.
McBride and Hart both put in powerful performances that led to the win. McBride finished with 19 points and was a perfect 5-for-5 from three, while Hart scored 22 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and dished seven assists.
Head coach Mike Brown held himself accountable for his previous rotations, many of which saw Hart be benched late in games.
“I’ll be the first to say that wasn’t the right thing to do,” Brown said, per DailyKnicks, on benching Hart in the fourth quarter of previous games. “Because he does so many great things for us, and our group, and our coaching staff. And obviously, as time has gone on, we’ve gotten a better feel for how we’re going to play him: and he’s got a better feel too.”
Hart has stepped up with key players out
Hart’s early season benching was the result of a very slow start. He wasn’t in much of a rhythm offensively whatsoever, and his lack of aggression was hurting the team on both ends.
However, lately he has shown more of a willingness to score, and the offense as a team is humming as a result. His 22 points on Wednesday were a season-high, and he knocked down four three-pointers in that game as well.
With OG Anunoby and Landry Shamet out for some time, Brown has had to mix up his lineups and search for one that works. The last two games have seen much better results for them on both ends of the floor, so perhaps Hart becomes a regular starter once again.
Nevertheless, the Knicks have plenty of options that they can use to get spot starts, which is a testament to the guard depth they have. They’ll look to win their third straight game on Friday when they head back home to take on the Milwaukee Bucks.