Josh Hart is dealing with a nerve issue in his shooting hand, the Knicks guard confirmed.
“My nerve hasn’t fully gotten back to what it was before, so there is a little bit of tingling, a little bit of numbness in part of my hand,” Hart said after Sunday’s 128-116 win over the Chicago Bulls.
“Hopefully, at some point, that nerve will get back.”
Hart has been playing with a splint on the ring finger on that right hand after undergoing surgery during the offseason.
The veteran guard re-aggregated that injury before the season but has committed to playing through it.
Sunday’s confirmation of the nerve issue followed Hart’s best performance of the young season, as he scored 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting with nine rebounds.
Hart, who missed the season opener with lumbar spasms, entered Sunday averaging just 2.8 points per game on 21.1% shooting through his first four appearances.
“He had 14 and nine tonight, so if he was healthy, oh my gosh, look out,” remarked head coach Mike Brown, who said he was unaware of Hart’s nerve issue. “He’s playing fine. He’s missed a lot of time, so he’s playing catch-up, and he’s doing a heck of a job playing catch-up for us.”
Hart shot 1-of-4 on 3-pointers in Sunday’s win but was 3-of-3 on free throws. He added three assists in his 26 minutes off the bench.
“We saw Josh Hart,” said Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson. “The one we know and love.”
