Josh Hart is finding his way into the NBA record books in one cool category for the Knicks this season.
Hart, a Swiss-army knife utility player in New York, recorded his eighth triple-double of the season and 14th of his career with 12 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists in Monday’s victory over the Miami Heat.
His performance tied Knicks legend Walt “Clyde” Frazier for most triple-doubles in a single season in franchise history, a mark set in the 1968-69 season.
Which means one more will put him in sole ownership of a record for one of the more storied franchises in all of professional sports.
Not bad at all for a guy whose game doesn’t scream record-setter. A candid Hart reflected on the accomplishment in front of his locker on Monday.
“It’s cool. Y’all know me. Y’all seen me play. My playing style is very sporadic,” he said. “You never know what you’re gonna get, so for me to be in the same sentence is nothing but a blessing from God.”
Hart is now tied at 16th place with Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey and former Knicks All-Star Julius Randle for most career triple-doubles among active NBA players. Russell Westbrook leads the category with 203 over his career, Nikola Jokic is second with 159 and LeBron James ranks third at 122. Luka Doncic ranks fourth (82), and James Harden rounds out the top-five with 79 career triple-doubles.
Which puts Hart in the ballpark of elite company considering all 14 of his career triple-doubles have come in his last two-and-a-half seasons in New York.
Hart is averaging 14.2 points and career-highs in both rebounds (9.8) and assists (5.7) per game this season. He has recorded at least one triple-double in each month of Knicks basketball this season, and with 15 games remaining on the regular season schedule, there’s a real chance the starting forward has a shot at separating himself from Frazier by the end of the season.
“When I step away from this game, I’m not gonna be in that many record books, and I’m fine with that,” said Hart. “Once I’m done with this game, I’m done with this game. But it’s just a blessing from him and my teammate.”
Monday’s performance couldn’t have come at a better time after an 0-for-7 shooting performance for zero points in San Francisco in the final stop of the Knicks’ five-game road trip against the the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
“Josh was a monster,” said head coach Tom Thibodeau after the victory
The Knicks outscored the Heat by a game-high 31 points in Hart’s 29 minutes on the floor on Monday. He continues to be an option for New York to generate offense through with Jalen Brunson out recovering from a right ankle sprain.
Hart recorded 14 points and 20 rebounds in the loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, the first game the All-Star guard missed after his injury. He finished with 18 points in the victory over the Sacramento Kings, then came up one assist shy of another triple-double in New York’s narrow overtime road victory in Portland over the Trail Blazers.
Not to mention he finished with four steals on Monday against the Heat.
“They’ve been defending,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the Knicks’ new formula without Brunson in the lineup. “That’s the story right now. Holding Thibs down every single night. So we’ll have to make sure we’ve got our pressure releases and attack the way we know we’re capable of.”
The Knicks will need that production to continue if they’re going to survive the rest of the month — and beyond — without Brunson.
An ESPN report that aired midway through the nationally-televised Knicks-Heat game noted New York’s All-Star guard is in a walking boot and could be out until closer to the playoffs.
Thibodeau smiled when asked by a reporter whether or not Brunson was still in a walking boot as of Monday.
“I’m not sure,” the coach said as he walked off from the podium after the game. “Sometimes I see him and he’s in a boot, and sometimes he’s not.”
Hart’s play also gave his head coach another reason to smile. The Knicks (42-24) wouldn’t be boasting a break-even record without their All-Star guard if it weren’t for their all-doing forward stepping up in the captain’s absence.
