SAN ANTONIO — While Jalen Brunson showed tremendous determination in New York’s opening NBA Finals win, veteran utility player Josh Hart ranks as the second most crucial performer in the series’ opening contest.
The 6-foot-5 Hart managed just three points on 1-of-5 shooting. However, he dominated the boards with 15 rebounds while adding six assists and four steals in New York’s 105-95 triumph over the home team San Antonio Spurs. Hart is eager to continue his impact when the teams meet again Friday evening for Game 2.
The 31-year-old Hart grabbed three more boards than any other player on the court, including San Antonio’s 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyama.
“His energy is just relentless, it doesn’t stop,” Brunson said Thursday of Hart, his former college teammate at Villanova. “I mean, he eats candy all the time. That tells you who he is. He’s a big kid with an absurd amount of energy.”
Hart’s impact proved valuable as New York extended its playoff victory streak to 12 games, matching the second-longest run in NBA history.
Hart posted averages of 12.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists across 66 regular-season contests. His playoff statistics show 10.9, 9.1 and 4.7, respectively.
Hart, however, focuses solely on statistics when discussing wins and losses.
“It takes humility and just a willingness to sacrifice,” Hart said. “We’re in the NBA Finals — there’s millions of people watching. It’s easy to get wrapped up in human nature of wanting to get recognition, wanting to score the ball, wanting to show people what you can do on the biggest stage.
“That’s not everyone’s calling and not everyone’s assignment. I know for me, that’s not really my assignment. It takes a little bit of time to find that humility.”
Knicks coach Mike Brown appreciates having such a selfless player like Hart on his roster.
“He rebounded the basketball. He was great,” Brown said. “He was great on the weak side defensively. He impacted the game in so many different ways for us. When you look at what he shot from the field, you wouldn’t think that he was probably the most impactful guy on the game last night.”
Brunson served as the offensive catalyst, scoring 13 of his 30 points during the fourth quarter. Brunson also battled through injuries — right knee, left ankle — suffered during the opening half.
New York finished Game 1 with an 11-0 surge to leave San Antonio stunned on their home court.
San Antonio managed only 6-of-21 shooting and turned the ball over five times while getting outscored by 10 points in the fourth quarter.
The Spurs roster includes numerous players experiencing their first NBA Finals, but coach Mitch Johnson rejected the idea that inexperience caused their late-game struggles.
“Old teams make bad decisions, too, at the end of games,” Johnson said. “It’s looking at a picture, understand if you see that moving forward, whatever that pattern is, whatever led to that situation, if you can recognize it and make a better decision next time or understand maybe where there’s a better opportunity to look for an advantage, we’ll try to help them with that.”
The most telling indicator of their loss was Wembanyama’s 6-of-21 field goal performance. The French star also turned the ball over six times.
He insisted he didn’t feel overwhelmed by the pressure of his debut on basketball’s biggest stage. Wembanyama also received a message from legendary director of basketball operations Gregg Popovich regarding his showing.
“In the big lines, it was that I’ve been bad and I’m better than this,” Wembanyama said of what Popovich’s message entailed.
Wembanyama still managed 26 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots.
One San Antonio player who struggled was De’Aaron Fox, who managed seven points on 3-of-13 shooting while frequently guarding Brunson.
Fox acknowledged the obvious Thursday — his shooting must improve — while emphasizing that Wednesday’s contest represents just one defeat.
“We know it’s a long series,” Fox said. “Obviously you want to win every game that you have on your home court, but it’s not the way it happens every day. We try to go in and fix the things we need to fix. Obviously we want a different outcome.”
