Josh Hart may have already given the Knicks a useful read on Friday’s matchup with Boston: Mitchell Robinson could end up on him.
Hart said Thursday, as reported by SNY’s Ben Krimmel, “They cross match a lot, so I’m sure he’ll be guarding me,” and that possibility opens the door to something New York should at least explore. If Boston’s center is the man attached to Hart, the Knicks have a chance to drag him into the action instead of letting him linger near the rim.
That’s where Hart as a screener for Jalen Brunson starts to make sense. A Hart-Brunson pick forces Robinson to make a decision rather than simply sitting behind the play and waiting for a drive to defend. Mike Brown hasn’t announced anything along those lines, but the setup is intriguing enough to test.
The basic idea is straightforward: if Robinson is the big on Hart, then a screen involving Hart brings that big closer to the ball. From there, Boston has to choose.
Stay deep, switch, or come up higher, and each option changes the possession. The point isn’t to turn Hart into something he isn’t.
It’s to make sure he’s not just standing off to the side while the possession unfolds somewhere else.
Hart has already shown enough in the opener to make that approach more appealing. He scored 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting, hit two of five from three and handed out three assists. That’s not proof of a new offensive ceiling, but it is enough to make a do-nothing role feel like a waste.
There are plenty of ways the Knicks could try a small sample of this. Hart could set the screen and slip away before full contact.
He could catch a short pass if the defense collapses on Brunson. The goal would be to create movement and force a decision, not to reinvent Hart overnight.
The first few possessions would matter more than the design on paper. A late pass into a short roll, or a screen that produces nothing, doesn’t automatically beat a clean catch-and-shoot look. The Knicks would just be checking whether the idea actually creates an edge.
Boston, of course, can answer in other ways. Robinson might wind up guarding someone else.
The Celtics could switch the action cleanly. Hart’s defender might simply stay back and take away the value of the screen.
If that happens, the Knicks should move on and run something else instead of trying to prove the concept just because it sounds clever.
Keeping Hart spaced is still a perfectly reasonable fallback when the pass leads to a shot he’s ready to take. But New York shouldn’t settle for letting a passive cross-match dictate the night.
Robinson helped the Knicks win a championship, and Hart’s former teammates made that affection clear Thursday. Friday’s task is simpler than sentiment: if Boston wants Robinson patrolling the paint because of Hart, make him work for it.
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