The Minutes Police aren’t going to like this.
After leading the NBA in total minutes since February, Josh Hart was the shining example of energy and conditioning through the opening four games of the Knicks’ series against the Sixers.
He credited the extra grind of the regular season with preparing not only himself, but also his Knicks teammates who were supposedly being worn down all season by Tom Thibodeau.
“It’s always funny because you see especially now during the playoffs, everybody is playing 40 minutes. Some people can’t do it,” Hart said. “Some people go from 34 to 41 and they don’t have the energy.
“It’s something we’ve had to deal with throughout the whole season.”
Hart entered Tuesday’s Game 5 averaging a series-high 44.7 minutes as Thibodeau cut his rotation to seven or eight players. Most impressively, Hart was a force off the glass in fourth quarters, averaging 3.5 boards in those final 12 minutes — including 1.5 offensive rebounds.
Through the first four games of the series, the Knicks outscored the Sixers by 14 total points in the fourth quarters, with Hart out-rebounding Joel Embiid, 14-2.
“I’m not really surprised because I was able to do it at times in the regular season,” Hart said. “I think the biggest thing for me is just pursuing the ball. I think when the fourth quarter comes, it’s easy for opposing teams or coaches when scouting saying, ‘Those guys are going to crash the glass every time.’ Sometimes you can match it for one quarter, two quarter, three quarters. But if it’s not something that’s part of your foundation, something that’s in your DNA, at some point you are going to forget.
“Myself, I’m programmed to do that as much as I’m in the game. If I’m playing 48, I’m programmed to do that all 48. You might do a great job for 46 minutes of it, that last two minutes if there’s a little slip, we want to capitalize.”
It happened in Game 2, when Isaiah Hartenstein snatched an offensive rebound that led to Donte DiVincenzo’s go-ahead three.
It happened in Game 4, when the Knicks grabbed seven offensive rebounds in a three-minute stretch of the fourth quarter.
The Sixers never recovered.
Hart, who religiously digests a pregame diet of sugar and caffeine, credits his late-game energy to muscle memory from the regular season. He was forced into extended action for the final three months because of injuries to Julius Randle and OG Anunoby.
The extended action hasn’t stopped.
“I wish I could tell you in the summer I run five miles a day at a 6-minute pace. But I don’t,” Hart said. “Luckily I never let myself get too out of shape. When you run like a bat out of hell for 81 games for 40 minutes, you are in pretty good condition.
“I get about 300-400 milligrams of caffeine (before the game). Mike and Ikes. And then I’m like, let’s get ready to run around.”
The same is true for Brunson, minus the terrible nutrition.
He had the ball and the responsibility for all of the series, and he never seemed to tire or settle despite being shadowed by Kelly Oubre or Nic Batum — a contrast to the often gassed and hobbling star opponent, Joel Embiid.
Brunson, who was 10th in the NBA in total minutes during the regular season, agreed that those Thibs shifts have helped.
“It’s a reflection of preparing yourself for the season and maintaining during the season. I think everyone on the outside talks about our workload and what we’re doing and how we’re not gonna make it and stuff like that,” said Brunson, who entered Tuesday averaging 33 points and set the franchise’s single-game record for points with 47 in Game 4. “I mean, I guess scientifically sometimes some of that can be true, but I think from a mental standpoint, if we understand where our bodies are at, if we understand what it takes, it’s gonna put us in position to be successful in the long run.”
