On Friday evening, Josh Hart and the New York Knicks hit the road to take on the Chicago Bulls as both teams claw their way to ideal positioning for the upcoming 2024 playoffs. Hart and his teammates most recently picked up a win on Thursday evening when the Knicks knocked off the Sacramento Kings in the friendly confines of Madison Square Garden.

Relatively early on in the game versus the Bulls, some controversy ensued when Hart was ejected after appearing to inadvertently kick Bulls wing Javonte Green in the face on a loose ball.

Some Knicks fans took to X, the social media platform formerly referred to as Twitter, to express their thoughts on the referees' decision.

Some took their frustration out on official Scott Foster, who was the crew chief for the game.

“These refs are actually a joke. How is this a flagrant 2? I hate scott foster,” one critic wrote.

Others took the opinion that Hart knew exactly what he was doing. A commenter wrote, “No place for intentionally dirty stuff like this in the league.”

What is and isn't dirty?

The review of the play showed that Josh Hart probably didn't fully see Green in his peripheral before extending his leg. However, Hart doesn't exactly have a spotless reputation in that department. Last spring, in Game 1 of the Knicks' semifinal series vs the Miami Heat, Hart embellished contact in an attempt to draw a foul call and in the process ended up injuring the ankle of Heat star Jimmy Butler, who never looked quite like himself after that for the duration of the Miami playoff run, which extended far beyond the New York series.

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Conversely, some Knicks fans on social media recently took aim at current Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr., who in late January took a charge that ultimately ended up sending New York power forward Julius Randle out of the lineup for the season due to a shoulder injury sustained on the play. The irony, of course, was that in that instance, replay review clearly showed Jaquez lining up to take the charge well before Randle went airborne.

In any case, both the Heat and Knicks have reputations as teams who play a physical brand of basketball, which generally bodes well for teams looking to find playoff success.

The NBA postseason is slated to begin later this month.