Relentless Josh Hart continues to impact game even when hes not scoring

SAN ANTONIO — Jalen Brunson had no jokes, no sarcastic remarks, no not-so-subtle digs about his longtime teammate. Josh Hart had been too important — becoming the first player in an NBA Finals game to lead both teams outright in rebounds (15), assists (6) and steals (4) — prompting the Knicks captain to produce a rare moment of sincere praise for his friend. One day later, Brunson couldn’t help but inject a playful jab into another compliment for his podcast co-host. “His energy is just relentless, it doesn’t stop, I mean, he eats candy all the time.That tells you who he is,” Brunson said Thursday.

“He’s a big kid with an absurd amount of energy.” Though Brunson owned the spotlight while scoring 13 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter of the Game 1 win, Hart repeatedly demoralized the inexperienced Spurs without taking a shot, finishing with six rebounds — all but one with 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyama on the floor — and three steals in the final seven minutes. Hart, who finished with a team-best plus-22 rating and no turnovers, became the first player since Larry Bird (1986) to record 15 rebounds, six assists and four steals in the Finals.He became the first Knick to record at least 15 rebounds and five assists in the Finals since Dave DeBusschere (1972).  Sign up for Inside the Knicks by Stefan Bondy, a weekly exclusive on Sports+.

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Enjoy this Post Sports+ exclusive newsletter! Hart, who scored three points (1-for-5 from the field, 0-for-3 on 3-pointers), also recorded the fewest points in the Finals of any player with at least 15 rebounds and six assists since Bill Russell (1959). “When you look at what he shot from the field, you wouldn’t think that he was probably the most impactful guy on the game,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said.“He was huge.

He helped us with our pace....