Knicks guard Josh Hart was left open and often in Game 2 on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden, leading the way with 26 points, seven assists, four rebounds and two steals in New York's 109-93 blowout win over the Cleveland Cavs.
Following the game, Hart doubled down on a great performance in his postgame press conference in what felt like an improv skit with teammate Karl Anthony-Towns.
Upon entering the media room with a pizza box in tow and a slice in hand, Hart was more than ready to chat it up with reporters, and that included a truly hilarious way of conveying his perspective on NBA analytics.
The Lamppost Quote Heard 'Round the NBA: Why Hart's 26-Point Night Made His Words Even More Powerful
After being told Knicks head coach Mike Brown had just compared him to Andre Iguodala, an NBA Finals MVP for the Golden State Warriors, in the sense that Hart is also the type of player to just go out and compete rather then pay attention to the increasingly extensive analytics of the sport, Hart delivered the following gem:
"I'm never a huge analytics guy," Hart said. "At a certain point, they are a lamp post to a drunk person. You can lean on them but it won't get you home."
If there were ever a way to explain NBA analytics in the most non-technical way possible, in the sense that they do tell part of a game's story but not the whole story, Hart's memorable quote might be the clubhouse leader for the foreseeable future.
The cherry on top, quite clearly, was the baffled reaction from "KAT," who promptly removed his sunglasses and looked at Hart, seemingly in a state of shock, amusement and confusion, finally saying, "Oh my god, man."
And that just led to more comedic gold from the duo.
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
"I'm not gonna lie, that was Jay Wright," Hart replied. "That was his quote, man. Shoutout Jay Wright."
Wright, of course, was Hart's college head coach at Villanova.
The two teammates went on to bicker from there, with Hart insisting what a great quote it was and essentially re-explaining it to Anthony-Towns, finally hitting him with the line of, "You didn't even go to college."
The Knicks are on a blistering nine-game playoff winning streak and appear to be having all the laughs to go along with the glory.
Even the usually all-business Jalen Brunson got in on the act in a separate press conference after Game 2, sarcastically stating in reference to his close friend Hart, "I'm really not trying to look for him, he just happens to be open."
With Hart's "lamp post line" understandably making the rounds on social media, one of the very best Knicks-related memes came from X/Twitter user @nickythegood, who used Brunson's viral reaction to the Knicks acquiring Hart back in 2023 to sum the whole thing up:
Yes, that pretty much says it all.
The Eastern Conference Finals will now shift to Cleveland, which is really the best type of glass half-full news any Cavs fan, player or coach could possibly hear given the 2-0 series hole the team currently finds themselves in.
Game 3 is slated to tip-off at Rocket Arena on Saturday, May 23, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
