Josh Hart breaks silence on potentially getting moved to bench ahead of Game 3 vs. Pacers

The New York Knicks dropped the first two games of their Eastern Conference Finals series against the Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden, and ahead of a pivotal Game 3 for the Knicks, they’re reportedly considering altering their starting lineup.

According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau is mulling inserting big man Mitchell Robinson in the starting five and having guard Josh Hart come off the pine.

Hart has started in every one of the 14 games he’s played in during the 2025 NBA Playoffs, but he is coming off of an underwhelming Game 2 performance, while Robinson put together maybe his best game of these playoffs in the loss.

Robinson didn’t finish with numbers that jump off the stat sheet, but he was still incredibly impactful. He ended up with six points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots.

With Sunday night’s Game 3 only a few hours away, Hart broke his silence on the possibility of him moving to the bench, and he seems to be all for the relegation of his role if it’s for the betterment of the team.

“I’ve been the 15th man, I’ve been the third man, I’ve been the sixth man, I’ve been whatever,” Hart said per Stefan Bondy on X. “I truly feel like I’m a starter in the league. I think I played amazing this year. So, if it happens, cool. I can’t sit here and preach about sacrifice and getting out of our own personal agendas and then a decision like that is made and then be mad at it.”

It makes sense that the the Knicks may get creative and try to throw things at the wall and see what sticks, as their hopes of advancing to the NBA Finals are hanging by a thread. The odds are heavily stacked against the Knicks to represent the Eastern Conference in the championship series, as 92.7 percent of teams in NBA playoff history to take a 2-0 series lead have gone on to advance.

What makes the Knicks’ current circumstances particularly disappointing is that they partly have themselves to blame for being in a 2-0 hole. The Knicks were ahead by 14 points with less than three minutes to go in the fourth quarter of Game 1, yet they lost that game in overtime in an epic collapse.

If the Knicks do roll with Robinson instead of Hart in the starting lineup, hopefully Robinson’s chops as an interior finisher, rebounder and rim protector will help the Knicks pick up a road victory and get back in this Eastern Conference Finals series.