“Don’t Be Scared if …”: Josh Hart Tries to Intimidate Brook Lopez During Knicks’ In-Season Tournament Quarterfinals Against Bucks

Eastern Conference giants collided for the in-season tournament as the Milwaukee Bucks hosted the New York Knicks. They went up against each other in Wisconsin in the competition’s quarter-finals to secure a semi-final spot in Las Vegas. For better coverage of on-court happenings, the broadcasters, TNT decided to mic up the visiting side’s shooting guard, Josh Hart.

The easygoing and fun-loving nature of the 28-year-old was supposed to produce moments of entertainment for the listeners. Fortunately, it turned out to be precisely that way as his in-game talks grasped the viewers’ attention. While the New York franchise fought hard against the Bucks, Hart attempted his best to keep everyone engaged in the match.

In one particular instance, he walked up to the opposition’s center, Brook Lopez, near the scorer’s table with an ulterior motive. Josh tried to mockingly intimate his 7’1 opponent, stating, “I know when you got the ball in the post against me it’s a mismatch. Don’t be scared if you gotta pass it out!”. The exchange caught the humourous nature of Hart wonderfully as Lopez could not help but smile at his words, as seen in the X (Formerly Twitter) post by ‘NBA on TNT‘.

“I know when you got the ball in the post against me it’s a mismatch. Don’t be scared if you gotta pass it out!”

Josh Hart mic’d up is too funny pic.twitter.com/cucO0xJkXC

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) December 6, 2023

His statement comes across as no surprise to the followers of the sport as the 6’4 star has become well-known for his wittiness. From making funny faces on the court to pulling his teammates’ legs online, Josh is a popular figure in the NBA community for his drollness. Thus, Brook received the message sportingly, further proving the broadcasting channel’s choice to give the responsibility to Hart as the right one.

What happened next to Josh Hart and the New York Knicks?

Despite the antics, the Knicks lost the quarter-final clash with a scoreline of 146-122. Josh came off the bench to score 11 points in 26 minutes for his franchise. Julius Randle produced a memorable night with 41-6-5 but was unable to avoid his organization’s second defeat to the Bucks in the tournament.

For the hosts, the duo of Damian Lillard and Giannis Antetokounmpo became the difference. Lillard turned up the heat as he went 28-3-7, while Giannis nearly recorded a triple-double with 35-8-10. Lopez registered 8 rebounds in the match as he continued with his task of regaining possession for his team.

With this, the Milwaukee stars are all set to visit Sin City for the final four of the tournament. The Indian Pacers await them for the semi-final matchup of the tournament. The Knicks players would face the Boston Celtics following the result as their poor fortune continued.