Josh Hart says his throat grab of Jalen Suggs during the Knicks' loss to the Magic on Saturday was accidental.
The incident occurred when Hart picked up a technical in the fourth quarter after fighting Suggs for a loose ball. Suggs had been hounding Jalen Brunson all night defensively, and the play juiced him up, prompting a "Let's go Magic" chant from the crowd.
In an interview with reporters, Hart explained that he wasn't even looking at Suggs when he grabbed him by the neck, but rather focused on the ball. He claimed it was just one of those plays where bodies are flying and hands are flying, and he didn't mean to hit Suggs in the throat.
The technical foul called on Hart marked his second of the past three games, following a jawing incident with the referee in last week's loss to the Heat. Despite the altercation, Hart scored 12 points with five rebounds before fouling out in 29 minutes.
On the other side, Orlando's Jamahl Mosley missed the game due to an illness, while assistant coach Joe Prunty took over the head coaching duties and secured the win for his team.
The incident occurred when Hart picked up a technical in the fourth quarter after fighting Suggs for a loose ball. Suggs had been hounding Jalen Brunson all night defensively, and the play juiced him up, prompting a "Let's go Magic" chant from the crowd.
In an interview with reporters, Hart explained that he wasn't even looking at Suggs when he grabbed him by the neck, but rather focused on the ball. He claimed it was just one of those plays where bodies are flying and hands are flying, and he didn't mean to hit Suggs in the throat.
The technical foul called on Hart marked his second of the past three games, following a jawing incident with the referee in last week's loss to the Heat. Despite the altercation, Hart scored 12 points with five rebounds before fouling out in 29 minutes.
On the other side, Orlando's Jamahl Mosley missed the game due to an illness, while assistant coach Joe Prunty took over the head coaching duties and secured the win for his team.
his whole story sounds like something out of a movie, "it was just an accident" yeah right, if you're gonna get technical fouls in two games straight it's not an accident, it's a pattern bro 
plus that little detail about him not even looking at Suggs when he grabs him by the throat is so suspicious 
what's up with that? and let's be real if Suggs was just hounding Brunson all night like Hart said maybe he should've tried to shake him off instead of getting all worked up, either way it's not an excuse for grabbing someone by the neck 
I don't buy it. It shows a lack of accountability from Hart, if you ask me. The fact that he wasn't even looking at Suggs when he grabbed him by the neck is what worries me - where's his focus on the game? On being a team player? We need players like Hart to set an example and conduct themselves in a professional manner, both on and off the court. 
think josh hart is being a bit too honest here... like, come on man! that was a pretty rough grab on the neck 
it's one thing to say it was an accident, but actions speak louder than words, you know? maybe he should've just taken the technical and not tried to spin it so much 
. and congrats to the magic on the win! 
The guy had a reputation before this game for being a bit of a hothead, and now he's acting like he doesn't know his own face? 
.
Josh Hart thinks that grab was just a fluke lol 
like come on Josh, u were in the zone and u saw an open lane to take Jalen Suggs down 
and now ur teammates r lookin at u like what's good bro 
and they deserve it, Joe Prunty came in hot 
coachin up and takin care of business 
. It seemed like a pretty clear foul to me, especially since Suggs was already getting under his skin all game long 
. I'm not saying Hart's a dirty player or anything, but it's definitely suspicious that he's claiming it was just an accident 
. And what's with the "it was one of those plays where bodies are flying and hands are flying" excuse? That sounds like a pretty convenient cop-out to me 
. Plus, he still managed to rack up some solid stats despite getting yelled at for that throat grab 
. Maybe the refs were a bit too eager to call that technical?
that grab on Suggs was super intense 
!
school just started and i wish they had a sports dept like this one, can u imagine gettin a detention for bein too competitive on the court? 
#PlayerSafetyMatters - I mean, even if it was an accident, grabbing someone by the neck can be super serious and might have hurt Suggs a bit