NBA fans gravely concerned for Josh Hart after Tom Thibodeau plays him for 47 minutes in loss: "Gonna make his ACL break like D-Rose"

New York Knicks guard Josh Hart nearly played an entire 48-minute game during Thursday’s home loss to the Golden State Warriors. Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau’s refusal to rest the 28-year-old left NBA fans concerned about his well-being.

Thibodeau has long been criticized for overworking his teams’ top players, dating back to the beginning of his coaching career with the Chicago Bulls (2010-11). However, New York being extremely shorthanded against Golden State seemingly exacerbated his questionable coaching habits.

The Knicks entered Thursday missing three starters, including star forward Julius Randle (shoulder), two-way forward OG Anunoby (elbow) and defensive-minded center Mitchell Robinson (ankle).

Their absences could have resulted in Thibodeau giving his bench players increased run, including recently acquired veterans Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks. However, he instead opted to play Hart 47:10 of a possible 48 minutes.

Hart’s heavy workload came despite the Knicks never leading and falling behind by as many as 17 points en route to a 110-99 loss. Thus, fans on X/Twitter were alarmed about Thibodeau unnecessarily putting the seven-year veteran at risk of sustaining an injury.

Meanwhile, others cracked jokes about Thibodeau once again overworking one of his key players.

Below are some more of the top fan reactions to Thibodeau playing Hart for 47 minutes against the Warriors:

Josh Hart records game-high 18 rebounds in 47 minutes against Golden State

Notably, despite New York’s loss to Golden State, Josh Hart recorded a well-rounded stat line in his 47 minutes of action.

Hart finished with 14 points, a game-high 18 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and three 3-pointers. However, he shot just 4-for-17 (23.5%). Meanwhile, the Knicks collectively struggled, shooting just 35-for-95 (36.8%) in a miserable offensive showing.

New York was led by a team-best 27 points, five rebounds, five assists and four 3s on 44.0% shooting from star point guard Jalen Brunson.

Meanwhile, superstar point guard Steph Curry carried Golden State behind a remarkable long-range shooting performance. The two-time MVP finished with a game-high 31 points, 11 rebounds and eight 3-pointers on 42.3% shooting.

The Knicks’ loss marked their second straight. However, they remain fourth in the Eastern Conference (35-25). On the flip side, the Warriors (31-27, 10th in the Western Conference) have won two consecutive games, furthering their chances of securing a play-in/playoff spot.

New York will attempt to bounce back when it visits the Cleveland Cavaliers (38-20) on Sunday. Golden State, on the other hand, will try to maintain its success on the road against the Toronto Raptors (22-37) on Friday.

About the author

Tristan Rawcliffe is a basketball writer at Sportskeeda. Basketball has been Tristan's lifelong passion since age 11, and hailing from Brantford, Ontario, Tristan's loyalty lies with the Toronto Raptors.

He is a big fan of Nikola Jokic for his fundamental playstyle and Scottie Barnes for his versatility and potential. Tristan credits Nick Nurse for leading the Raptors to their first championship in 2019 and he holds Kawhi Leonard's iconic buzzer-beater in the playoffs as his favorite NBA moment.

Tristan is an all-around stats enthusiast and excels with statistical research skills to enrich his articles with compelling data and facts.

When he's not writing about basketball, Tristan enjoys spending time with family, playing sports and board games, swimming with his six-year-old son and traveling around Davao.

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