Fresh Hart! Knicks' Josh Hart Ready for Playoff Debut

Josh Hart had to wait for his NBA Playoff debut but finally punched his ticket with the New York Knicks on Sunday.

For a while, it appeared that The Big Dance was going to be Josh Hart's last dance, at least in terms of reaching championship-caliber basketball. 

Hart was a member of Villanova University's 2016 national title effort, working alongside, Jalen Brunson to top North Carolina in the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship finale. It was perhaps only appropriate that Hart returned to the postseason when the men's Final Four made its way back to Houston on Saturday and Monday, its first excursion to NRG Stadium since the Wildcats' narrow victory over the Tar Heels. 

It took nearly six years and 368 NBA regular season contests but Hart will finally get a chance to partake in the professional playoffs later this month after he and the New York Knicks clinched a spot on the proper NBA bracket with a 118-109 win over the Washington Wizards on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. New York (46-33) is the fifth team to earn one of six automatic entries in the Eastern Conference.

"It's a good accomplishment," Hart said in video from the Knicks. "Obviously, that's the goal to be in the playoffs and now our goal is to be the best team we can be at the right time." 

"We've checked that box but we've got to continue to get better." 

Hart wasn't on the floor for the celebration, having endured an injury scare with just under eight minutes left in the game after a collision with Jordan Goodwin. Unlike Julius Randle, who's out for the remainder of the regular season with a similar ankle injury, Hart didn't believe the ailment was anything to worry about, remarking to Steve Popper of Newsday that "I’ve played with worse."

While those involved will likely credit a team effort for the Knicks' rise from Play-In Tournament purgatory to the relative assurances of the top six, the individual impact Hart has had on metropolitan fortunes can't be denied: since Hart entered the New York rotation after a Feb. 9 trade with Portland, it has posted a 16-6 record, the second-best in the NBA in that span to only the Eastern leaders in Milwaukee.

It's safe to say that Hart played an active role in ending his personal playoff drought. which stood as the fourth-longest among active players. In the aforementioned 22 games, Hart is averaging 10.5 points and 6.7 rebounds, serving as a reliable spark plug in relief. He could be called upon for even bigger responsibilities if Randle isn't ready for the upcoming postseason opener. Hart praised new entrants replacing Randle in the rotation, such as Obi Toppin (19 points on Sunday), while also being content with what he personally has been able to do with his fellow reserves like Isiah Hartenstein.

"I think we have a lot of stuff covered in terms of ... playing with energy, can score (with) the ball in different ways, can stop other teams from scoring and just play smart basketball," he said. "When you have three guys that can come off the bench that could be starters on other teams in this league, that's a great attribute for your team to have.

"We're comfortable playing with each other. Obviously, we haven't had a huge sample size but we're growing in confidence and it's where all of us want it to be. We've been effective and it's been good." 

Hart is far from the only playoff-starved player set to make his maiden voyage: De'Aaron Fox and Malik Monk, will likewise break their postseason virginity with Sacramento. Buddy Hield of the Indiana Pacers is the active leader at 545 games, the sixth-longest streak of all time. 

The Knicks' rep acknowledged that he was aware of the drought, having seen a tweet about the dire phenomenon leading into the Wizards' visit. 

"I'm extremely excited, personally, because that's something that I wanted to do and I haven't had that opportunity in the last five years," Hart said. "I can't wait to see the Garden rocking during that time." 

Before the postseason festivities begin, Hart and the Knicks will tip off a final three-game regular season stretch on Wednesday night when they face the Pacers on the road (7 p.m. ET, MSG). 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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