Hart began his second season in the NBA on a tear. The Villanova product scored in double digits in each of his first five games, dropping 20 against Portland in the season opener on Oct. 18 and San Antonio four days later. Hart scored a season-high 22 points on Dec. 30 in a victory over San Antonio. He also eclipsed the 20-point plateau versus Minnesota on Nov. 7 when he scored 21 in a 114-110 win. He counted his 1,000th career point on Mar. 9 against Boston. He'd also string together a streak of six consecutive games where he scored in double-digits around the holidays, starting with an 11-point outing against Memphis on Dec. 23 and concluding with 13 versus Oklahoma City on Jan. 2. It was in that matchup with the Thunder where Hart also grabbed a career-high 15 boards. He quickly rebounded after the streak ended, scoring 10 points against Minnesota on Jan. 6 and 14 versus Dallas on Jan. 7 to make it eight out of nine games in double figures. Hart also dished a season-high six assists and five steals in that last outing. He was eventually slowed by knee problems, which forced him to undergo surgery and miss the final 11 contests. He finished his sophomore campaign averaging 7.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists while playing 25.6 minutes per game.

Josh Hart was drafted with the 30th overall pick by the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2017 NBA Draft. He made his NBA Debut on Oct. 20 with a brief two minute run during a win at Phoenix. Hart scored his first NBA points two nights later when he posted five points, four rebounds and one assist over 15 minutes during a home loss to the Pelicans. The Villanova product appeared in 11 straight games before a being assigned to the G-League South Bay Lakers for two games. Hart averaged 17.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 three-pointers and 1.5 steals in two G-League games for South Bay before returning to Los Angeles. On Dec. 14, Hart earned his first NBA start and double-doubled via 11 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block during a loss at Cleveland. From Dec. 14 to Feb. 26, Hart started 20 of the Lakers' 34 games and posted 8.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per contest. But on Feb. 28, Hart suffered a broken left finger during practice that required surgery. The finger injury forced Hart to miss 14 games. He returned Mar. 30 and again double-doubled with 13 points, 13 rebounds and block during close home loss to Milwaukee. In the last game of the season, an Apr. 11 win over the Clippers, the rookie scored a season-high 30 points and added five boards, five assists and one steal. The Lakers finished at 35-47 and missed the playoffs.