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Before facing the Oklahoma City Thunder, New York Knicks guard Josh Hart took a shot at Isaiah Hartenstein, his former teammate, and then took a jab at Karl-Anthony Towns, his current. After Towns earned 1.1 million All-Star votes, Hart hilariously pointed out the difference between playing for the Knicks and the Timberwolves, based out of a smaller Minnesota market.
Hart commented on Towns’ All-Star votes Friday morning, per the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy.
“KAT, you see the difference between New York and Minnesota?” Josh Hart said Friday morning before the Knicks’ 117-107 loss to the Thunder. “Difference of a million.”
Towns replied to Hart.
“Geographical differences,” Towns, a four-time All-Star but never a starter, answered Hart.
Towns earned 1.1 million votes, the third-highest amount in the Eastern Conference behind Boston Celtics champion Jayson Tatum and Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. His teammate, who plays in a big market like New York, noticed the difference.
Last year with the Timberwolves, Towns received just 139,642 votes.
The Knicks lost 117-107 to the Thunder, snapping a nine-game winning streak. Oklahoma City pulled away in the fourth quarter as All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander topped off his 33-point scoring night. The Thunder’s top-ranked defense forced a pair of Jalen Brunson turnovers that eventually sealed the Knicks’ fate as Gilgeous-Alexander led his team to a double-digit victory.
Mikal Bridges led the Knicks with 24 points. Brunson added 22 points and nine assists, Hart added 19 points and seven rebounds, while Towns finished with 17 points and 22 boards.
Karl-Anthony Towns replaces Isaiah Hartenstein for Knicks
The Knicks’ trade with the Timberwolves for Karl-Anthony Towns in exchange for Julius Randle shocked the NBA. But Towns replacing Isaiah Hartenstein is paying off, as the league-leading rebounder continues his stellar campaign in the Big Apple. The same could be said about Hartenstein’s decision to pick the Thunder over the Knicks in free agency last summer. In beating the Knicks, the Thunder stretched their historic winning streak to 14.
After the game, Hart discussed what the Knicks need to learn from Friday’s loss.
“No positives. Just got to be better,” Josh Hart said after scoring 19 points in 44 minutes. “We’ve got to execute a little better, especially in that fourth quarter. We know it. We’ve got to find it. You can’t rely on anything else. We’ve got to make sure we go out there and execute and play our game.”
The Knicks continue the second leg of their back-to-back against the Bulls on Saturday.
