CHARLOTTE, N.C. – As the Knicks prepared for their big NBA Cup showdown against the Bucks on Black Friday, Josh Hart fit neatly into the commissioner’s hat with a bright idea to spice up Adam Silver’s tournament.
The half-million dollar reward for winning is great, Hart said, especially since he has to replace some luxury watches that were recently stolen (more on that later).
But as an added bonus for the winners, what about an advantage in the regular season standings?
“I think it would be really cool if they tightened it up a little bit, whoever is the winner gets half a game. [extra in the regular-season win column]Hart said. “If you go to the championship game, you get half a game if you win. Losing the championship doesn’t go against your record. Now you have that half game, so you have the tiebreaker and it legitimizes the NBA Cup a little bit more. That’s what I would like to see.”
Hart’s suggestion makes sense, as the current pressure on the NBA Cup, among other things, is that winning only adds to the burden of a grueling schedule.
Currently, the championship match does not count towards the final rankings; it’s just 48 extra minutes that other teams don’t have to play.
The previous two NBA Cup winners – the Lakers and Bucks – flamed out in the playoffs.
It is a small and simple adjustment from Hart’s brain. And yes, a final record of 52 ¹/₂-30 looks strange.
But the NBA Cup is evolving – as the league teases more and more European teams – and the NBA is looking for ways to captivate fans and players alike.
The Knicks appear to be prioritizing the tournament under Mike Brown, even without the half-game incentive.
The new coach has preached the importance of the NBA Cup and then ran up the score in two group play victories, with starters on the court deep in garbage time and relentlessly seeking a better point differential.
It has left the Knicks (2-1 in group play) with the following scenario for Black Friday at MSG:
- Beat the Bucks and they’ll advance to the quarterfinals.
- Lose and they’re out.
‘Boys are locked up. We’re locked in,” Miles McBride said. “When they think of something to play for, we pay attention to it. We take it seriously.”
Adding to the drama is the availability of Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is leaning towards a return after a four-game absence due to a groin injury. He was upgraded to questionable before Wednesday’s loss to the Heat but did not play, making Friday at MSG the logical return.
Giannis loves the Garden, so much so that he has reportedly chosen the Knicks as his preferred destination if he is traded by Milwaukee.
He also eliminated the Knicks two years ago in the quarterfinals of the first NBA Cup and is the defending champion.
There are a lot of reasons to pay attention to Friday night, the biggest game yet of this young Knicks season.
“Yes, we talk about that [the NBA Cup]Brown said. “I think busyness in life is a privilege, so you try to manufacture it from time to time. I think if you’re in a situation where there’s pressure, you do pretty well because if you’re competitive you’re going to put pressure on yourself no matter what. So trying to feel it from the outside as much as possible is a privilege and it prepares you for the postseason in my opinion, so I bring it up with our guys.
Antetokounmpo’s presence changes the dynamic of the game — he’s averaging 31.2 points, 10.8 rebounds and 6.8 assists — especially since the Knicks don’t have OG Anunoby (hamstring injury) to defend him.
But Karl-Anthony Towns, who was set to line up against Antetokounmpo before tipoff, said they can’t worry about Antetokounmpo’s status.
“Obviously he’s one of the top players in the NBA, but if we don’t take care of what we need to do first, if we don’t play Knicks basketball, we’re going to lose the game,” Towns said. “Put our best foot forward, play our best version and we have a chance every night.”
The Knicks can claim the NBA Cup with four more wins, starting with Black Friday (five non-tournament games are scheduled for the quarterfinals).
The semifinals and finals will take place in Las Vegas, and the prize money could serve as compensation for Hart after he said his watches were snatched from a suitcase in his room at The Dominick Hotel in Manhattan in September.
Police sources told The Post that the case contained three watches and one bracelet worth a total of $185,000.
The NBA Cup winners, meanwhile, receive more than $530,000 per player; the runners-up will receive more than $212,000 per player; the semifinalists receive more than $53,000.
“To me, that’s watch money,” Hart said Wednesday.
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