Things were not going right for the Knicks on Wednesday night, but despite being down by as much as 22 points to the Bulls they had a chance to win late. But Josh Hart’s foul on Coby White dashed those hopes in the Knicks’ 124-123 loss to Chicago.
Up 123-121, Hart fouled White behind the three-point line with less than four seconds remaining. White sunk all three free throws, which ultimately gave the Bulls the win.
But was Hart’s foul really a foul? Replays on the broadcast showed angles where Hart may not have hit White’s arm.
Coach Tom Thibodeau threw up his hand in exasperation when giving a non-answer after being asked if Hart’s foul was indeed a foul but the Knicks forward would not get into the “was it/wasn’t it” of the call.
“They called a foul. It’s a foul. Inexcusable mistake,” Hart said. “They got a good screen on the top and I was behind. I just went up to contest it. And yeah, it’s a foul.”
Hart explained that he had to sag off White a little bit before he broke for the ball and Bulls center Nikola Vucevic set up what Hart called a “pretty good” screen that had him trailing his assignment.
Once White went up for the shot, Hart went to contest when the foul happened. But despite his mistake, the Knicks had one more chance to take the game. Jalen Brunson pulled up for a fadeaway shot as time expired but it went in and out, sending the Madison Square Garden crowd home disappointed.
“That’s someone we trust with the ball. My thought process in that moment is to be in a position to go up for a rebound,” Hart said of the final play. “Tough one. Should have been a big statement win for us. First time we got hit and started to swing back. I gotta be better. That one is on my shoulders. Now just gotta move on from it.”
Wednesday was the first time the Knicks played a back-to-back this season but they’ll have a day off before they host the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night to continue the Group Play stage of the NBA Cup tournament.
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