Josh Hart and Steve Kerr agree on NBA’s schedule problem — but the answer is complicated

DALLAS — After Steve Kerr sounded the alarm on the NBA’s pace and schedule contributing to a rash of injuries, Josh Hart agreed that there are too many games, but also recognized the financial benefit is a compelling argument for status quo. 

“Do I think there’s too many games? Yeah,” Hart said Thursday of the 82-game schedule before the Knicks faced the Mavericks. “Conversely, will [the owners] and the league and players take a pay cut to not do that? I don’t know. 

“It’s easy to sit there and say that we play too many games — which we do — but conversely, we’re also blessed to be able to benefit greatly from it.”

As Kerr argued, the new fad of playing fast — a style the Knicks have adopted under coach Mike Brown — has increased the strain on bodies, particularly soft-tissue ligaments and tendons. In the wake of Achilles tendon tears suffered by Tyrese Haliburton, Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard, Dejounte Murray and Jayson Tatum, team medical staffs are clearly wary of calf strains developing into ruptures.