Getty Former Los Angeles Lakers guard Josh Hart may be headed for a massive payday.
New York Knicks guard Josh Hart, who began his NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers, is projected to land a sizable raise in free agency. Former NBA executive John Hollinger offered his free agent projections for The Athletic and predicted Hart will land a potential deal in the $60 to $80 million range.
“… Even the most homerific Knicks fan would probably admit that $28.6 million feels like a lofty valuation for Hart,” Hollinger wrote on June 8, 2023. “His career shooting (35.0 percent from 3 on low volume), age (28) and size (6-foot-5 if you pull on his toes) all weigh against paying him as a top-dozen shooting guard like this valuation implies.
“That said, New York won big by bringing him in from Portland for the cost of a late first. Hart surely will opt out of his below-market contract, but one presumes he’ll be back in New York on a multi-year deal that pays him like a plus wing starter (in the $20 million range) for the next three or four years.”
Hart is Hollinger’s No. 6 ranked free agent with a projected value of $28.6 million per year, but the ex-NBA exec believes the guard will land a contract closer to a $20 million salary. For context, Hollinger has Hart ranked just above current Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell in his free agency breakdown.
Josh Hart on Lakers Trade: ‘I Was Sick’
Hart spent his first two seasons with the Lakers before being part of the blockbuster deal with the Pelicans that sent Anthony Davis to Los Angeles in 2019. The wing averaged 7.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game while shooting 33.4% from long range during his two seasons in LA, a stint that included 45 starts.
The Knicks guard has a three-year, $37.9 million contract that runs through the 2023-24, but Hart possesses a player option that allows him to hit free agency this offseason. Hart will likely secure a more lucrative salary than the $12.9 million he would make with New York next season on his current deal.
During a June 5 interview with Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks, Hart opened up about his experience getting traded by the Lakers in 2019. At the time, Hart went viral after posting a selfie of himself smiling when news broke regarding the blockbuster trade. The veteran now admits he was “smiling through the pain because I was sick.”
“It was smiling through the pain, because I was sick,” Hart revealed. “I did not want to leave. I posted that as a false front of like, ‘Oh yeah, I’m excited to go to New Orleans.’
“Nah, I got to LA and my biggest thing is I always wanted to be in the league and be with at least one team for a long time. I wanted a place to have as home and that was a bummer for me to get traded.
“Obviously, you [got] traded for a guy like AD. I didn’t feel like I was disrespected or something. I didn’t get traded for a copy machine or some cash or something like that. I got traded for a top-five player in the league at that point.”
Could the Lakers Explore Signing Knicks Guard Josh Hart in NBA Free Agency?
Hart’s comments could prompt speculation that the guard would consider a potential Lakers reunion. The challenge is Los Angeles is likely to prioritize re-signing their own free agents like Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. For the Lakers to make a run at Hart, the only realistic scenario (assuming Reaves and Hachimura are re-signed) is to work out a sign-and-trade with the Knicks for D’Angelo Russell.
This would require mutual interest by Russell and the Knicks. Hart averaged 10.2 points, 7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game in 25 appearances last season with the Knicks after being traded by the Blazers. A $20 million annual salary is a hefty potential price tag for a role player, but the early buzz is that teams see upside in Hart’s potential impact.