Josh Hart’s right ring finger will remain a game-to-game maintenance issue rather than a surgical fix. The Knicks wing said Thursday that a full joint replacement is now the only operation available, and that procedure would end his playing career.
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Hart age | 31 |
| 2025-26 3-point percentage | 41 percent, career high |
| Guaranteed scheduled pay, next two seasons | $43.3 million |
| 2027-28 team option | $22.4 million |
Hart had expected to have another procedure after playing through the 2025-26 season in a splint. Instead, doctors told him over the summer that the damaged joint needs to be replaced entirely. For an NBA player whose job includes catching passes, securing rebounds and shooting through contact, that is not a workable option until retirement.
“You can’t have the banging, repetitive motion,” Hart said following practice. “Grabbing a rebound, palming it, shooting, catching the ball — all that. If I had a joint replacement, I wouldn’t be able to play.”
A career-long workaround
The practical plan is unchanged in one respect: Hart will keep protecting the finger with tape or a splint whenever he is on the floor. He put it more bluntly when discussing the alternatives.
“I guess it’s either wrap it till I retire or cut it off,” Hart said. “That’s really the only alternative: joint replacement, leave it alone or amputation.”
The injury dates to the 2025 Eastern Conference finals against the Indiana Pacers. Hart had surgery after that series, then reinjured the finger while defending Mikal Bridges in a Knicks scrimmage that summer. He entered last season expecting to wear protection throughout the year before seeking another repair in the offseason.
That repair is no longer available in a form compatible with basketball. Hart said he will consider the joint replacement after he retires, hoping it can also straighten a finger that has visibly shifted out of alignment.
“The joint and the bone and everything,” Hart said. “I’ll probably do it when I retire. Hopefully I can make it straight. It’s a little off-center. I’m hoping after that replacement, it can get a little straighter.”
Coach Mike Brown offered his own scouting report on the finger: “Josh, he’s a handsome man. But that finger is uggglyyy.”
Pain has not stopped the production
The appearance is one thing; the daily symptoms are another. Hart said the injury affects a nerve, and his hand sometimes went numb during last season. The discomfort can change without warning, ranging from a normal-feeling hand to pain when he catches the ball or simply closes his fist.
“Some days it’ll be good. Some days it’ll hurt to catch the ball,” Hart said. “It varies. I wish I could tell you when I wake up what’s going to be good, what’s going to be bad. Some days it’s like a regular functioning finger, and other days it hurts just to close my hand, to make a fist.”
Hart still delivered the best shooting season of his career in 2025-26, hitting 41 percent from 3-point range and posting his top effective field-goal percentage while the condition continued to worsen. He is also coming off an NBA championship, with no intention of stepping away soon.
Contract picture remains open
Hart is extension-eligible with New York, though he said at media day that he did not expect an agreement to be completed. The Knicks have him scheduled for $43.3 million across the next two seasons, with a $22.4 million team option in 2027-28.
For now, there is no offseason operation on the calendar. Hart’s answer is to keep playing, keep wrapping the finger and postpone the replacement until basketball is over.
