The New York Knicks entered their Tuesday night contest against the lowly Charlotte Hornets having gone undefeated since acquiring Josh Hart before the trade deadline. Their nine-game winning streak was the stuff of contenders, as they even managed to vanquish the Boston Celtics twice during that span. Thus, it looked like a foregone conclusion that the Knicks would extend their winning run to double digits, especially with the Hornets not looking like much of a threat for much of the 2022-23 season.

However, their game against the Hornets ended up being a trap game, as they ended up losing, 112-105, to put an anticlimactic end to their torrid stretch. But it wasn't like the Knicks didn't have their fair share of opportunities to win the game. They took a two-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, but they appeared to run out of steam as the Hornets held them to 16 points in the payoff period.

Nevertheless, Josh Hart asserted after the game that the Knicks have no excuses, especially when looking at the nature of their livelihoods from a big picture perspective.

“The reality also is our job is to play basketball. You got people getting up at 6 am doing 12 hour shifts. Those people are tired. For us, we're playing a game. Obviously, we're fortunate enough to play a game like this, but we have to keep that in perspective,” Hart said, per Ian Begley of SNY.

The Knicks guard/forward then added that playing the game they love for a living means that it's their responsibility to pour their heart out into everything they do on the court.

“We got to make sure we're full of energy and lively every time we step on the court. I think that's the biggest thing. I don't think we can blame this on fatigue. We got to continue grow and play winning basketball,” Hart added.

With all the hullabaloo surrounding the controversy of load management, Josh Hart shows the mentality of a winning player by taking responsibility of letting a winnable game get away from the Knicks. This is exactly the kind of thinking that the Knicks need as they continue to cement themselves as contenders.