The Knicks bounced back Sunday with a 128-116 win over the Chicago Bulls, snapping their three-game losing streak after falling to the same Bulls team 135-125 on Friday.
New York evened their record at 3-3 with the victory.
Josh Hart finally showed signs of life with his best performance of the season, putting up 14 points and grabbing nine rebounds. But after the game, Hart revealed he’s been playing through a concerning injury.
“My nerve hasn’t fully gotten back to what it was before. There’s a little bit of tingling, a little bit of numbness in part of my hand,” Hart told reporters. “Hopefully, at some point, that nerve will get back, hopefully sooner rather than later. Right now, it’s a process.”
The 30-year-old guard has been dealing with hand issues since last season’s playoffs.
Hart initially injured his right index finger during the 2025 playoffs but chose to play through it without surgery after the Knicks’ season ended. Unfortunately, he re-aggravated the same injury during training camp this year.
The hand problems weren’t his only setback.
A back injury during preseason forced Hart to miss most of training camp and the regular season opener. Since then, he’s played in five straight games, but clearly hasn’t been himself.
His minutes have taken a significant hit under new head coach Mike Brown.
After leading the entire NBA with a grueling 37.6 minutes per game last season, Hart is now playing just 23 minutes per night. The reduction might be a blessing in disguise given his physical struggles.
Interestingly, Brown seemed surprised when told about Hart’s nerve issues.
“News to me,” Brown said after Sunday’s game. “Casey [Smith, Knicks VP sports medicine] handling it best he can and Josh too. He had 14 and 9 so can’t wait til he’s fully healthy – look out,” he added with a laugh. “Doing a heckuva job playing catchup for us.”
The shooting hand numbness explains Hart’s offensive struggles this season. Even with Sunday’s improved performance, he’s averaging just 5.0 points per game – on pace for the lowest mark of his career.
But there’s plenty of time to turn things around.
With 76 games remaining, Hart has ample opportunity to improve his numbers while working through what he described as both “physical and mental adversity” early in the season.
Despite his scoring woes, Hart’s trademark intensity hasn’t wavered. Along with his 14 points and nine rebounds on Sunday, he added three assists to help secure the win.
The Knicks’ guard depth has helped them weather Hart’s slow start. They’ll look to build momentum when they host the Wizards at home on Monday night.
