Knicks Giving HC Reasons to Try Old Starting Lineup

Mike Brown offered intrigue as the newest head coach of the New York Knicks when he accepted the job over the summer. He was no lemon or stand-in; Brown was an experienced coach who, like Tom Thibodeau, the man he was signed to replace, had two Coach of the Year wins at a few previous stops.

He didn't shy away from the pressures of the New York market, either, willing to make sweeping changes to the way that the Knicks had previously taken care of business on the court. He promised more ball-movement, deeper rotations and, perhaps most interestingly, changes to previously-secure positions along the starting lineup.

Everyone looked at Josh Hart as a potential odd man out, as even the respect he'd built up in Thibodeau's system couldn't save him from an eventual benching in the playoffs. It's a lot harder to justify his league-leading minutes per game when he's relegated to an inefficient spot-up guy on offense, as his defense wasn't enough to keep the Knicks from sinking down the stretch of their dramatic postseason run.

That's where Mitchell Robinson came in handy, a defensive anchor to do the gritty center responsibilities that don't suit Karl-Anthony Towns' game. Brown evidently took note of the veteran's sudden starting impact, and rolled with Robinson over Hart as the fifth starter when the team fully united on the court for this ongoing regular season.

But Hart, unlike the brittle Robinson, is ever-present. He's among the most durable players in the NBA with one of the best batteries, and it was only a matter of time before he's re-proven his worth as an occasional starter.

Hart Compiles Most Hart-y Performance Yet

The Knicks' NBA Cup Tournament-clinching 118-109 win over the Milwaukee Bucks gave Hart the opportunity to showcase all of the best parts of his game. He scored 19 points, a battering ram in the open floor who converted nine free throws in his numerous drives to the rim, but also showed that classic rebounding prowess with 15 boards in Madison Square Garden. And he's more comfortable with the ball in his hands than some fans may have remembered, recording seven assists for the third straight game since being elevated to the starting five.