New York Knicks wing Josh Hart underwent surgery for a finger injury he suffered during the playoffs, the team announced Wednesday. Hart had the procedure on his right ring finger, but the Knicks expect him to resume basketball activities later this summer.
Hart just completed his second full season with the Knicks. Before eventually coming off the bench for New York in the Eastern Conference finals, Hart was an everyday Knicks starter the past two seasons.
In 2024-25, he got the nod for the team’s starting five in all 77 of his regular-season games, averaging 13.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 52.5% from the field in a league-leading 37.6 minutes per game.
Hart was the catalyst for his postseason role change. He volunteered to come off the bench in favor of center — and offensive rebound vacuum — Mitchell Robinson for a pivotal Game 3 versus the Indiana Pacers. At the time, New York found itself in a 2-0 hole, and Hart, continuing a dialogue he started with then-head coach Tom Thibodeau amid some individual struggles during the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Celtics, green-lit the lineup change.
That selfless conversation set the stage for a Game 3 comeback that gave the Knicks a fighting chance in their first Eastern Conference finals appearance in 25 years. It didn’t drastically affect his minutes, either. Despite not starting the final four games of New York’s playoff run, he still averaged 31.5 minutes in those outings.
Hart’s Knicks bowed out in six games to the Pacers, who took a 68-win Oklahoma City Thunder team to seven games in the NBA Finals.
Hart clocked out of the postseason averaging 11.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 18 playoff games. During that span, he posted a 47.2% field-goal percentage, including a 37% clip from beyond the arc.
He played a significant role in the Knicks closing out the Detroit Pistons in the first round and then the defending NBA champion Celtics in the Eastern Conference semis.
Hart has proved to be an effective two-way wing for the Knicks ever since they traded for him during the 2022-23 season. The following offseason, New York signed Hart to a four-year, $81 million extension through the 2027-28 season.
The Villanova product was the No. 30 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. He started his career with the Los Angeles Lakers but also played for the New Orleans Pelicans and Portland Trail Blazers before arriving in New York.
Once Hart’s fully recovered, he’ll try to build on an impressive 2024-25 campaign, in which he logged nine triple-doubles and helped the Knicks reach the doorstep of the NBA Finals.
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