Knicks Star Josh Hart on Modeling Underwear, Playing for Mike Brown, and His Worst-Dressed Teammate

Josh Hart has officially reached NBA unc status. As one of the Nova Knicks, Hart and his college-turned-NBA teammates will celebrate the 10th anniversary of their 2016 NCAA championship this spring. Since hoisting that March Madness trophy nearly a decade ago, Hart has developed a reputation as one of the funniest guys in the NBA, largely on the back of his playful and incessant jabs at Jalen Brunson, the Knicks’ point guard who was also his Villanova running mate.

As Hart has progressed from late first-round pick to reliable rotation guy to the NBA’s minutes-per-game leader, he’s seen his profile grow both in New York—where he picked up the cheeky nickname Hart of the City—and nationwide. Hart is the type of guy that most casual fans are aware of now, with a penchant for outrebounding guys six inches taller than him, and also gobbling candy before games.

Heading into his ninth season in the league, Hart is now the face of Tommy John’s first-ever athlete-led campaign. As part of his partnership with the apparel company, Hart filmed a holiday-themed commercial—“Twas the Hart Before Christmas”—that will run throughout the holiday season. He also did some underwear modeling for the brand, something his point guard and longtime friend has been giving him guff about. Before the Knicks embark on a season packed with legitimate championship aspirations, Hart gave us the lowdown on that campaign, the team’s preseason trip to Abu Dhabi, and life after Tom Thibodeau.

GQ: When you hear the phrase “ninth NBA season,” what goes through your head?

Josh Hart: That the other eight years went by super fast!

In the NBA, the average [career] is what, four years? So, just being in that position, I’m extremely blessed. Hopefully I get one more, get my lifetime health insurance. I got to make sure I’m good for at least one more year.

Everyone loves to talk about their “welcome to the league” moment. I’m curious if you’ve had an “I’m getting old” moment in the NBA yet?

That’s tough. At one point last year, I won’t say who we were playing, but they had a couple of the main guys out. I looked down the list and I’m like, “Yo, I have no idea who, really, any of these guys are.” They’re all one- to two-year players. I’m just like, “Alright, now I know I’m getting old.” I always felt like I was a young guy playing with all these dudes, and now I’m sitting here as one of the older guys. Man, time is flying.

It’s the combination of, “I don’t know who these guys are,” and then looking them up and finding out they were born in 2005.

Yeah! Pacôme [Dadiet], one of our rookies last year, said he was born in 2005. I was like, “Oh hell, that sounds crazy.” I still feel like I’m 25. Then I think about it: “Oh, no. I’m 30!”

What was the experience like for you in Abu Dhabi?

It was super cool. I’ve been [to the UAE] twice, once with USA Basketball two or three years ago, and then I was in Dubai the summer before that for a friend’s wedding. They have a cool tradition there.

Honestly, it wasn’t anything too crazy. In Abu Dhabi, everyone was super nice, super welcoming. Obviously, full-service hospitality, at the breakfast buffet and all those kinds of things—they were so nice. I wanted to go grab food from the line at one point, and they looked at me like I was doing something wrong! They were like, “No, no, we’re here, we’ll get it for you.” It was a little uncomfortable at first, but it was cool.

When you think about everywhere that basketball has taken you, is that the most, “Holy shit, I really never thought I would be here” place?

No, I think the Philippines was. That was super cool. I just never really thought I would be in the Philippines playing basketball, so that was definitely one of the spots like, “Wow, that’s crazy.”

Are you a big traveler? Did you go anywhere for fun this offseason?

Yeah, my wife and I always do something. It was my 30th birthday in March, so she got me a three-day golf trip to Scotland.