Latest news with #Hartenstein
USA Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
OKC Thunder mailbag: How should Lu Dort's possible contract extension be handled?
The calendar nears August, which means the NBA is in its driest part of the year. Rosters are mostly set as front offices head into vacations for the next couple of months before training camps start. The Oklahoma City Thunder will enter the 2025-26 season with the hopes of being repeat NBA champions. They had one of the greatest seasons ever with a 68-14 regular-season record and captured the Larry O'Brien trophy. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren were all signed to new contract extensions this offseason. But what about another Thunder starter who is sneakily extension-eligible? With plenty of time to kill, Thunder Wire will conduct regular mailbags to answer questions that fans have. One question being asked is if the Thunder should go four-for-four with big extensions this summer and sign Lu Dort to a new deal. There's no straightforward answer as OKC's payroll situation gets dicey after next season. Dort has two years, $36.4 million left on his current deal. The second year is a 2026-27 team option for $18.2 million. Considering the 26-year-old had his best season yet as he finally earned All-Defensive Team honors and stepped up in the playoffs, he's being criminally underpaid. That should change soon. If the Thunder feel confident enough about their payroll situation and comfortable with an expensive roster, they could go ahead and sign him this summer. But considering their recent history of decline-and-sign deals, they could wait until the next offseason to ink him to a long-term contract. Considering what other top defenders make, Dort could get in the $20 million to $30 million salary range pretty easily. He could surpass that, too. As currently constructed, that would place the Thunder with quite an expensive payroll. Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams and Holmgren are set to take up around 85% of OKC's cap space once the 2026-27 season starts. It'd be tough to pencil in another decent-sized salary before running into roster construction problems. You also have to consider other contract situations with Dort. Isaiah Hartenstein has a $28.5 million team option for the 2026-27 season. Cason Wallace will be eligible for an extension next summer. Alex Caruso will start a four-year, $81.1 million extension this upcoming season. It's a lot to tie up. The Thunder may need to decline Hartenstein's option anyway to avoid being punished with the first and second aprons. That doesn't even include the possibility of keeping Dort or Wallace. Just ballparking OKC's long-term cap sheet, it may be one or the other. Which is a tough decision to make. But if the Thunder hope to keep both, Caruso could be a trade candidate to make that possible. Even though he's on the wrong side of the age curve, the 31-year-old has a tradeable contract that averages around $20 million per season. He should easily have a market. If the Thunder move on from him and let Hartenstein walk, that could signal their hope to keep Dort and Wallace. I think the Thunder should do what they do best. Kick the can down the road. Make any long-term decisions on that group of four role players after next season. Dort has been a fixture since he arrived in 2019. He's been one of OKC's best gems ever as an undrafted rookie. Who knows how the Thunder prioritizes their upcoming contract situations outside of their Big 3, but Dort would be worth the headache to keep on a new extension. He's that valuable on both ends of the floor and is still in his prime. Extend Dort now or wait until next offseason before deciding what to do?What will happen with Dieng's contract? Salary dump him at the deadline and convert Barnhizer or Carlson to a standard deal? Trade Dieng for a win-now veteran?Will Chet's minutes be managed this reg szn?
USA Today
21-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Isaiah Hartenstein on differences between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, other NBA superstars
Journeying through his basketball career before he finally found his role, Isaiah Hartenstein has played with his share of NBA superstars. The 26-year-old has been around long enough to understand the differences between one franchise player and another. After being mostly a starter, Hartenstein enjoyed his first NBA championship with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Safe to say it was a successful first year after he left the New York Knicks in the 2024 offseason. The seven-footer was able to see Shai Gilgeous-Alexander have one of the greatest individual seasons ever highlighted by the MVP, Conference Finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP trophies. Playing with other all-time greats like James Harden and Jalen Brunson, Hartenstein detailed the difference on his "Podcast P with Paul George" episode between Gilgeous-Alexander and the rest of his past superstar teammates. The former career journeyman had the chance to learn from some of the best before he found his footing in the NBA. "He has no ego. There's no, 'I'm just gonna score and make it about myself.' It's never that," Hartenstein said. "There were even times at the beginning of the season when he threw me a pass when he got trapped. I threw it to the next man to get a shot. I was like, 'Sorry, I'll finish it next time and give you an assist.' He was like, 'I don't care. I just want to win, so do whatever you need.' Even when he's putting up those huge numbers, he's not searching for them. He's in the flow. He's trying to make the team as best as possible." There's always a degree of stat-padding involved with players the caliber of Gilgeous-Alexander, if that's what you want to call it. When you're one of the best, it's easy to pretty up your box score numbers for several reasons. But according to Hartenstein, Gilgeous-Alexander more often plays within rhythm. The receipts back it up, too. Before Gilgeous-Alexander broke it this past season, his previous career-high was just 45 points. Pretty pedestrian for modern times. It became a running gag on social media. The consistent 30-plus point scorer should've had it higher considering his pedigree. Hartenstein also said that Gilgeous-Alexander was a rare two-way superstar player. He might be a decent defender on the Thunder, but his steal numbers back up that he could play on both sides of the floor and doesn't bleed points by being attacked. "Him playing on both sides of the court, I think that's underrated. He plays defense. You can't go pick on him. He tries on defense," Hartenstein said. "It's not like, 'I had this iso for five seconds. I'm tired. I'm just going to chill on defense.' He doesn't do that. When you see that, it gives us the push and confidence he's going to do it both sides of the court." Always interesting to hear from Hartenstein. What he thinks of Gilgeous-Alexander has added weight to it, considering all of his stops before he joined the Thunder. Being arguably the best teammate he's ever had, what he does beyond the monster scoring numbers is the major difference for him.
USA Today
21-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Isaiah Hartenstein calls Nuggets Round 2 series the Thunder's toughest playoff test
Despite cruising to a historic 68-14 regular-season record, the Oklahoma City Thunder had to truly roll up their sleeves and earn an NBA championship with a grueling playoff journey. While two of their four playoff series went the distance, only one left a lasting impression. Count Isaiah Hartenstein as another Thunder player who recalls their Round 2 series win over the Denver Nuggets as their toughest test. It went the distance as OKC blew out Denver in a decisive Game 7. The back-and-forth classic saw the eventual NBA champion fall behind twice in the series before getting the win. Hartenstein appeared on "Podcast P with Paul George" to talk about the Thunder's championship run. The 26-year-old played an important role as he was mostly a starter throughout the two months of high-intensity basketball. It was a group effort to limit Nikola Jokic that was mentally and physically taxing. All hands were on deck to limit him. Hartenstein had his turns against Jokic to match up size with size. Chet Holmgren did the same when the three-time MVP winner tried to bully his way to the basket. It resulted in some pretty ugly shooting performances from Denver's best player. Finally, Alex Caruso matched up against him despite the size disadvantage in a curveball move that helped the Thunder win Game 7. "I think the only series where we were kinda a little bit on the ropes was Denver. Just Jokic and the way they play. They've been there before," Hartenstein said. "That was the only series we were like, 'Even if we do everything right, they probably still have a chance.' Every other series was like, 'If we do the right things, we're good.'" It shouldn't be a shocker to see the Thunder feel that way. It certainly felt like it at the time. Even though it was a Round 2 series, everybody thought the eventual NBA champion would come out of that series as the winner. Battling last year's ghosts, OKC showed why this season was different compared to last. The Thunder had to learn how to win close playoff battles. They did that against the Nuggets. It paid dividends a few weeks later when they went through a similar song and dance against the Indiana Pacers in the 2025 NBA Finals. This time, they were prepared for the moment and won the Larry O'Brien trophy because of it. "The Nuggets were the only series we were like, 'Even if we do everything right, they probably still have a chance.''Isaiah Hartenstein shares why Jokic & the Nuggets were OKC's biggest threat during their Finals run.
USA Today
15-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
How Mark Daigneault uses Mother Nature to motivate Thunder in championship season
Fresh off an NBA championship, Isaiah Hartenstein has had the chance to run some victory laps. His first year on the Oklahoma City Thunder was a smashing success. He was a key player in their playoff run that ended with a title and ring. Hartenstein enjoyed a career season with 11.2 points and 10.7 rebounds. Both were the best marks he's averaged after carving out a career from a possible journeyman to one of the better starting centers. Paired with Chet Holmgren, the double-big lineup was often used in the playoffs. When you win a championship, you can flex your muscles for the rest of the summer. Hartenstein has appeared on various national shows. He was recently on "The Rich Eisen Show" to reflect on his season and his decision to leave the New York Knicks. One of the topics brought up was Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault. In a good mood, Hartenstein revealed an anecdote that he probably shouldn't have. He said that he'd hilariously drum up motivation from things outside of basketball, such as Mother Nature. "He is a great coach, but he is like very good crazy in a sense. He would show us sometimes before games and before practices of animals hunting. Kinda like weird stuff like that, where he kinda may come over to a basketball sense," Hartenstein said. "He is a great coach. The way he can motivate, the way he explains the game is very unique. Very stoic in that sense, that gives us confidence too." That's funny. You seldom see that side of Daigneault in public. So, Hartenstein's reveal of one of his unconventional ways to motivate his team was the highlight of his interview. He's seen as one of the best head coaches in the league and has worked his way from unknown rebuild coach to a household name. "He kinda instills that, he says it all the time, that 0-0 mentality. We never want to be too high, too low, always want to be in that present moment," Hartenstein said. "His in-game adjustments are great, too. Yeah, he has been one of my favorite coaches to play for so far."
USA Today
15-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Isaiah Hartenstein trolls Gilbert Arenas for Thunder NBA Finals take
When you become an NBA champion, you get to enjoy a full summer of pulling out receipts from your drawer. Isaiah Hartenstein earned brownie points when he lived out every Oklahoma City Thunder fan's dream. He called out Gilbert Arenas for mocking the squad and their title chances. Before Hartenstein talked to Arenas in his talk show, the seven-footer brought up what he had previously said. Arenas said in April 2025 that the Thunder had zero chance of making the NBA Finals. That's despite putting the final touches to one of the greatest regular season campaigns ever. "Before we keep going, Hartenstein said. "Hey Gil, you said 0%?" Arenas was left embarrassed and stuttering over his words in his explanation. He said the context was that he's a Los Angeles Lakers fan, which made it understandable to be irrational about his team's playoff odds. I mean, sure. LeBron James and Luka Doncic were bounced out of the first round. "I think that might have been one of your worst takes," Hartenstein said. The Thunder heard all year that they were too inexperienced for their regular-season success to translate in the playoffs. Maybe it wasn't as dominant, but OKC ended with an NBA championship. Hartenstein played a key role as a starter. He's earned the victory lap.
