As the New York Knicks prepare for Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, Josh Hart made one thing clear: outside narratives about Jalen Brunson do not matter inside New York’s locker room.
Speaking Sunday, May 31, Hart repeatedly emphasized preparation, discipline and trust in the Knicks’ process while also offering a detailed assessment of Victor Wembanyama and San Antonio’s supporting cast before Wednesday’s opener.
Hart pushed back on the idea that the Finals could define Brunson’s place among the league’s elite players.
“I don’t really care what people say,” Hart said when asked about increased scrutiny surrounding the Knicks guard. “At the end of the day I’m not gonna base my judgment or evaluation of him as a player off people that never played the game and just never been in that situation.”
Hart added that neither he nor Brunson spends much time worrying about outside criticism.
“So I know he doesn’t really care about it. I don’t really care about it. At the end of the day those people are irrelevant,” Hart said.
Brunson enters the Finals averaging 26.9 points and 6.6 assists through 14 playoff games while helping lead New York to a 12-2 postseason record and sweeps of the Philadelphia 76ers and Cleveland Cavaliers.
Much of the conversation entering the series has centered on Wembanyama, who averaged 23.2 points, 10.8 rebounds and 3.5 blocks through San Antonio’s playoff run, including a seven-game Western Conference finals victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Asked whether there was a comparison for the Spurs star, Hart pointed to Kristaps Porzingis but acknowledged the challenge of matching Wembanyama’s profile.
“In terms of the height and shooting ability, in a sense maybe like Kristaps,” Hart said. “Just his ability to space the court and shoot over guys and things like that.”
“He’s a little more athletic than Kristaps is now, maybe young Kristaps,” Hart continued. “But it’s tough to use experience against anybody to match him.”
Hart also dismissed the idea that the Knicks would dramatically alter their approach when facing Wembanyama defensively.
“For me it’s shoot the ball with confidence or be quick to make out of place dribble handoffs, flare for slash and stuff like that,” Hart said. “When he’s down the floor that’s my ability to get JB open looks, Mikal open looks, KAT open looks.”
When asked whether he enjoys getting Wembanyama switched onto him, Hart answered with humor while acknowledging the challenge.
“That’s the only unanimous Defensive Player of the Year guarding me. So I think that’s a good sign for me,” Hart said. “I’m a pretty good basketball player.”
Still, Hart stressed that New York’s success will depend on sticking to habits built throughout the postseason rather than changing for the Finals stage.
“When you’re building championship habits, it’s very boring and it’s very meticulous and it’s frustrating at times,” Hart said. “But it never changes.”
“We continue to do what we do, continue to build those habits and nothing changes from the first round of the playoffs up to the finals,” he added. “We got to be locked in, focused, have attention to detail, physicality, a sense of desperation.”
Hart also warned against focusing exclusively on Wembanyama, highlighting San Antonio’s perimeter talent led by De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper.
“Obviously Wemby is gonna get a lot of attention in terms of game plan and media and that, but you can’t sleep on guys like De’Aaron or Castle, Harper, Champagnie,” Hart said. “If you do that, it’s gonna be a long series.”
