Starting Knicks forward Josh Hart returned to the rotation on Sunday against the Golden State Warriors after missing two games with left knee soreness.

Ahead of tipoff against the Warriors, Hart attributed his absence to an awkward landing on a fast break finish in the Knicks’ March 8 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. He then played in the second leg of the back-to-back against the Clippers before sitting the final two legs of the Knicks’ five-game road trip against losing teams in Utah and Indiana.

“It was just a play in the Laker game where I did my normal fastbreak finish, but just the landing on it kind of irritated it. So I think that kind of flared it up,” Hart said on Sunday. Asked if the injury is something he’ll need to monitor, the Knicks’ star said: “I hope not. We’ll see. Time will tell.”

In his third full season with the Knicks, Hart is as averaging 11.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.1 steals on 49.5% shooting from the field and 37.7% shooting from three-point range. Sunday marked his 55th of a possible 69 games played on the year.

Hart played 37 minutes and finished with 12 points, 13 rebounds and three assists against the Clippers before sitting in Utah and Indiana. He refused to make excuses for his knee ailment in the Knicks’ eight-point loss.

“Ehh. I was out there,” he said. “If I’m out there and able to play, there’s no excuses.”

KERR ON ALVARADO

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr gave a rave review of the Knicks’ final addition to their day-to-day rotation.

Jose Alvarado spent the first four-and-a-half seasons of his NBA career with the New Orleans Pelicans before joining the Knicks in a series of trades that sent Guerschon Yabusele to the Chicago Bulls before netting the Puerto Rican Brooklyn native in a subsequent deal with the Pelicans.

Alvarado played against Kerr’s Warriors 11 times with the Pelicans.

“Huge pickup [for the Knicks]. I’ve always been a fan. Just the energy he provides on both ends,” Kerr said ahead of tipoff against the Knicks on Sunday. “He’s a really good shooter, he’s aggressive. He’s a winner. Defensively, he’s a pest, causes turnovers, just the edge that he brings I thought was a really important addition for this team.”

Alvarado is averaging 5.7 points, 3.3 assists and a steal in 16 games since joining the Knicks, though he is shooting just 26.8% from three-point range and 38.2% from the field.

BROWN WEST COAST

Knicks head coach Mike Brown doesn’t think the first game back from the team’s five-game West Coast road trip should be any more challenging than any other game.

“I think every game can be challenging for a lot of different reasons,” he said. “Mainly, all teams are in the NBA, and they’re here for a reason. That stuff’s above my head.

“A lot of times they say, ‘it’s because of your clock’ or whatever. You win some, you lose some, and I don’t see rhyme or reason for it.”