Knicks' Josh Hart 'Not In a Good Head Space' After Benching in Loss to Pacers Amid Struggles

Josh Hart told reporters he has struggled "mentally" during his slow start to the New York Knicks' campaign to defend their title.

Hart had averaged 8.3 points through eight games before he went scoreless in the Knicks' Friday night NBA Cup loss at the Indiana Pacers.

"Right now I'm not in a good head space and I got to figure out how to improve that. And improve my play," Hart told reporters Friday night, per the New York Post's Stefan Bondy.

Bondy reported that when asked to clarify his comment, Hart said, "Just mentally. Got to be better mentally. Got to figure stuff out."

Hart went 0-for-4 from the field in Friday's 106-104 loss. He has shot 36.2 percent from the field and 29.5 percent from deep through nine games this season.

Knicks-Pacers Highlights

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He has missed three games last week due to a combination of an ankle injury, which he said he suffered during the preseason and recently re-aggravated, and illness, per The Athletic's Fred Katz and SNY's Ian Begley.

Knicks coach Mike Brown indicated earlier this week strong performances from Landry Shamet and Deuce McBride could potentially impact playing time for struggling starters like Hart and Mikal Bridges.

Bridges, who had shot just 32.9 percent from the field in his first 11 games of the season, started to bounce back Friday night in Indianapolis by shooting 8-for-12 for a season-high 18 points.

Hart will hope to regain some confidence with a similar resurgence in the near future as the Knicks prepare for a Sunday night matchup at the Toronto Raptors.