CHARLESTON, S.C. — If there’s one thing Josh Hart takes as seriously as basketball, it might be his love for Mike & Ikes. While he hasn’t officially declared his candy consumption goals for the season, it’s a safe bet he’s aiming to outdo himself.
On the court, though? Hart’s laser-focused on something else — his three-point shot.
It’s a weakness he’s determined to fix, and one that could elevate what projects as an already potent Knicks five-out offense, supercharged by the arrival of Karl-Anthony Towns in the blockbuster trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Hart wasn’t ready to reveal all of his goals for the 2024-25 season just yet, but after Wednesday’s line of questioning, one was at the forefront of his mind.
“I’ll tell you one [goal]: It’s to shoot better than 30% from three. That’s for damn sure,” Hart said after Wednesday’s practice at McAlister Fieldhouse. “So I’m looking for that number to go up for sure. The attempts will go up, too.”
The Mike & Ikes didn’t miss, but from three-point range last season, Hart’s shot wasn’t quite as sweet.
His 31% shooting clip through 81 games for the Knicks marked the worst season-long three-point shooting percentage of his seven-year NBA career. This came as a sharp drop from his scorching start at Madison Square Garden: after being traded mid-season from the Portland Trail Blazers in 2022-23, Hart had shot a blistering 51.9% from deep through the final 25 games of the regular season.
So the 20% year-over-year drop-off was unexpected.
With ice packs wrapped around his knees after Wednesdays’ practice, Hart opened up about his shooting struggles.
“I think it was just mental. I was trying to re-construct my jump shot, and sometimes when I do that, I think too much into it,” he said. “I miss one, I miss two, and I start thinking about the smoothness of it, the rhythm, the hand placement, all those types of things. And now I’m trying to juggle 10 different things while I’m trying to shoot a ball going full speed in a game. So that’s something I learned that I can’t do. So I just gotta go out there, shoot my shots when I’m open and live with the work I put in.”
Despite last season’s dip, Hart says he’s in a good place heading into Year 8.
“I feel confident with it. It feels good. Imma go out there, imma shoot my shots, imma be confident when I shoot my shots. That’s all I can do,” he said. “I put the work in. At the end of the day, that work will show. I had a terrible year shooting the ball last year, but at the end of the day, when that ball tips on the 22nd, I’m 0-for-0, and imma shoot it with confidence and be happy with it.”
If Hart’s three-point shot is in a better place, the Knicks will realize the best version of their five-out offense:
- Towns, statistically the best shooting big man in NBA history, is a 39.8% career three-point shooter.
- Jalen Brunson shot 40% from deep last season.
- OG Anunoby drained 39.4% of his threes after arriving via trade.
- Mikal Bridges — who hit 37.4% of his triples over two seasons in Brooklyn —could see that number rise with fewer on-ball duties next to Brunson and Towns.
- Miles McBride? He splashed 40% from beyond the arc last year.
- Even new additions Landry Shamet and Cameron Payne boast multiple seasons of 40% or better from deep (though Shamet’s percentage nosedived during a rough stint with the Washington Wizards).
- And let’s not forget rookie Tyler Kolek, seen knocking down off-the-dribble threes in training camp on Thursday. Kolek shot 39 and 40% from three in his final two years at Marquette, and he’s already making a case for minutes in the Knicks’ rotation.
Which means Hart, a key figure in this year’s squad, might just be the seventh- or eighth-best shooter in a lineup that’s locked and loaded from downtown.
But just like Hart’s game isn’t fueled entirely by his love for Mike & Ikes, his impact doesn’t hinge solely on his three-point shot.
Hart is a Swiss-army knife on the floor — coast-to-coast terror, elite finisher, and one of the most effective 6-4 rebounders in NBA history. He thrives on contact at the rim, turning broken plays into points or, just as often, into assists. He’s the kind of playmaker that makes the short roll sing — a la Bruce Brown during his time in Brooklyn with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving — capable of picking apart a defense, whether it’s for himself or his teammates.
Even if the three-ball isn’t falling, Hart’s ability to generate second-chance opportunities and disrupt defenses will remain a cornerstone of the Knicks’ attack.
But if the shot does come around, it will only stretch the floor further and give him even more room to operate.
“I feel like for my size, I’m one of the best finishers in the league for the last three or four years, so that allows me to get to the basket more. It allows me to be more of a decision-maker,” he said. “I’ve got four guys on the court that shoot 40 percent from three, and then obviously, having KAT on the perimeter, taking the big out of the paint allows you to fly in and get some more offensive rebounds and give us more possessions.”
The Knicks’ floor spacing is set to be sweeter than candy, and Hart’s ready to take full advantage — ideally with a sharper three-point shot in his arsenal. But he knows building that chemistry will take time, even with the offensive firepower on the roster.
“So I think it’s definitely gonna help. It’s gonna take a little time to get used to Mikal and OG cause our games fit well, but we’ve gotta get the rhythm when we’re on the court of who’s playing the four, who’s playing the three, the two, who’s doing those types of things. So it’s gonna take a little bit of time, but the spacing will definitely be love.”
