The New York Knicks survived their series against the Boston Celtics and have the scars to prove it. Josh Hart, the do-everything forward who has been an indispensable X-factor for Tom Thibodeau all year, took a Luke Kornet elbow to the face early in New York’s Game 5 loss. As fans watched in horror, Hart bled profusely from a wound that would end up requiring two separate rounds of stitches, but unsurprisingly for a guy whose toughness is his trademark, he stayed in the game to shoot his free throws before going to the locker room to get tended to.
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The Knicks lost that game, but they bounced back to blow the Celtics out by 38 in the deciding Game 6 at Madison Square Garden. Hart was a big reason why, as he posted a 10-11-11 triple-double to help the Knicks win their first series-clincher at MSG since 1999.
On the latest episode of the Roommates Show podcast, Hart spoke about what it was like getting injured and fighting through it.
“Right when I hit the floor, I just felt the blood. I was like, ‘Oh, I know I’m leaking,'” Hart recalled. He made his free throws and played two more possessions before being taken to the locker room for stitches, but he missed less than six minutes of game time before coming back in the second quarter.
He ended up playing 36 minutes in the game, then another 33 in Game 6, a number that surely would have been higher if the Knicks didn’t have the game wrapped up so early.
Hart still had a black eye on this episode of Roommates Show, and his description of the injury and the care he received isn’t for the squeamish.
“They did like four [stitches] during the game to just get it closed, and then I went the next morning, I ended up getting 14 or 15, I had to get like five on the inside, because the cut was hella deep, it went all the way to the bone. I think I have eight on the outside, and then did a couple crossing.”
Hart’s injury has become a call to arms for Knicks fans. Many of them have taken to wearing t-shirts with his bloody mug on them, but it doesn’t sound like Hart has an issue with someone else profiting off his likeness. “Let them go out there and get their money, bro, we cool … All they gotta do is just send me a free one and we good,” he laughed.
Hart and the Knicks will be out for revenge when they begin their series against the Pacers tonight. Indiana knocked the Knicks out of the playoffs last year, but they did it against a team that was absolutely ravaged by injuries. OG Anunoby barely played due to a strained hamstring, Jalen Brunson left Game 7 with a broken hand, and Hart battled through an abdominal strain.
The Knicks may be banged up this time around, but they’re much healthier than they were this time last year. This series is going to be a great one, and it begins at 8 p.m. ET tonight on TNT.
