The New York Knicks, in a tight battle for a playoff berth, added swingman Josh Hart in a deal with the Portland Trail Blazers, ESPN and The Athletic reported Wednesday night.
Portland reportedly will receive forward Cam Reddish, guards Svi Mykhailiuk and Ryan Arcidiacono and a protected first-round draft pick.
It is the second consecutive year in which Hart was dealt just ahead of the NBA trade deadline. Last season, he went from the Pelicans to the Trail Blazers in the trade that sent CJ McCollum to New Orleans.
In 51 starts for Portland this season, Hart averaged 9.5 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists.
Hart, a 27-year-old Villanova product, began his NBA career with the Lakers (2017-18 to 2018-19) before going to New Orleans in a three-team trade in July 2019 that brought Anthony Davis to Los Angeles.
In 347 career games (169 starts), Hart has averages of 9.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
Reddish, 23, contributed 8.4 points and 1.6 rebounds for New York this season in 20 games (eight starts), though he hasn’t played since early December. Those figures were down from his career norms of 10.2 points and three rebounds.
Arcidiacono, 28, saw action in just 11 games for the Knicks this season, amassing a total of three points and four rebounds in 26 minutes.
Mykhailiuk, 25, also was a bit-part player for the Knicks, averaging 1.6 points in 13 games.
The Knicks (30-26) are a half-game behind the Miami Heat (30-25) for the sixth and final automatic playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. New York currently sits in the top play-in spot.
Portland was 26-28 going into a Wednesday night home game against the Golden State Warriors, with the Trail Blazers sitting a half-game outside the last play-in position in the Western Conference.
–Field Level Media