Ahead of their Game 3 matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks forward Josh Hart made a surprising revelation.
A four-year prospect out of Villanova, Hart declared for the 2017 NBA Draft after a successful collegiate career. Leaving the Big East powerhouse a Consensus All-American, NCAA champion, and multi-time award winner, he was eventually selected 30th overall. In most other draft classes, Hart may have went as high as the lottery. However, the 2017 had plenty of highly regarded prospects that were a bit younger. At the time, teams were even more keen on drafting for potential rather than readiness.
That includes the Sixers.
Philadelphia had just begun ’The Process’ in 2014, drafting Kansas’s Joel Embiid as a building block. Two years later, they found their franchise point guard in Ben Simmons. Loaded with draft picks, their plan was simple. With their lottery picks, they would take the best player available. With their other picks, they could draft for potential or utilize them to facilitate trades.
Josh Hart Makes Dream Team Claim Ahead of Knicks-Sixers
In 2017, the Sixers acquired the 25th overall pick in the draft from the Orlando Magic in exchange for a 2020 first-rounder and second-rounder. Philadelphia used the pick to select Latvian center Anžejs Pasečņiks, who didn’t come over to the NBA until 2019.
It’s fortunate that the Sixers were able to recoup their 2020 first round pick from the Magic by trading Markelle Fultz to the Orlando Magic (after they derailed his career). That move allowed them to draft 2024 Most Improved Player of the Year, Tyrese Maxey. Furthermore, Pasečņiks only lasted for two seasons, flaming out after 28 career games.
However, had the Sixers used the pick to select a prospect a bit closer to home, they could have had both Hart and Maxey.
A DMV native that was born in Maryland and attended high school in Washington D.C., Hart’s alma mater is right down the street from the Sixers’ arena. There’s literally 44 minutes between the Villanova campus and Wells Fargo Arena.
“I wanted to go here,” Hart reveals, per The New York Post’s Stefan Bondy.
“They were at 25. They did a draft-and-stash, some European guy that I can’t pronounce his name. But this is the place I wanted to go. It was right down the street. Unfortunately, they felt they wanted a draft-and-stash. But draft night I was a little bummed out that 25 came and I wasn’t there.”
Instead, Hart was drafted 30th overall by the Utah Jazz. The Los Angeles Lakers acquired Hart on draft night in exchange for former first-round pick Tony Bradley.
L.A. held onto Hart for two seasons before including him in their trade package for Anthony Davis. After two-plus seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans, he was sent to the Portland Trail Blazers for CJ McCollum. Following a brief stint in Portland, Hart landed with the Knicks in a convoluted four-team transaction.
Hart has never been traded for poor performance, per se. At times, he’s been ineffective offensively, limited as an on-ball scorer and inconsistent off-ball. However, Hart’s constantly been on the move primarily because he’s always seen as expendable.
That’s changed with the Knicks.
The Right Man for New York
In New York, Hart’s ironman mentality is perfect.
Hart is —more than anything else —just a basketball player. Positionless at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, he impacts the game in every feasible way. Yet, he isn’t going out of his way to score, making him the NBA’s ultimate glue player.
In the 2023-24 regular season, the 29-year-old averaged 9.4 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 0.9 steals per game. It’s his fifth straight season averaging at least 7.0 rebounds per game, which is extraordinarily impressive for his height. In the First Round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs, Hart has been even better, averaging 21.5 points, 14.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game.
When it comes to not drafting Hart, Philadelphia likely isn’t crying over spilled milk. Nonetheless, he’s undoubtedly made them think about what could have been.
