After claiming the primary seed within the Western Conference standings and successful their first playoff collection in practically a decade, this summer time the OKC Thunder went out and made themselves much more menacing thanks to GM Sam Presti's wheeling and dealing methods.
From their actions in the course of the NBA Draft that noticed them come away with three complete gamers (two of which got here within the first spherical) to them taking full benefit of the commerce market within the Alex Caruso deal, Oklahoma City proved to be one of the crucial energetic organizations this offseason.
However, out of all of the strikes made by this entrance workplace, arguably essentially the most notable was their resolution to signal huge man Isaiah Hartenstein to a three-year, $87 million deal on day two of the free company festivities.
Following final yr's second-round postseason demise in opposition to the larger and bulkier Dallas Mavericks, it was evident that the Thunder wanted to add extra dimension to their rotation if they really wished to be seen as a authentic title risk.
Because of this, the 7-foot, 249-pound Hartenstein sports activities the pure construct to be a perfect reply to this obtrusive rotational weak spot, whereas his brute power, nitty-gritty type of play that noticed him publish career-best averages of seven.8 factors, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.1 blocks per evening in 2023-24 will solely additional strengthen the membership's play down low.
And whereas followers and pundits are champing on the bit to see how the 26-year-old manages to mesh out in OKC, I-Hart appears equally as excited to accomplice within the frontcourt with reigning rookie phenom, Chet Holmgren, as he even likened his talent set to that of eight-time All-Star, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
During a recent appearance on Ur.Perspectives podcast, Hartenstein mentioned how antsy he's to lastly share the ground with Holmgren, particularly highlighting his athleticism and “ability to roam” the ground as attributes that would make their tandem flourish.
While describing the sport of the 22-year-old, the massive man famous that it is “kind of how” Antetokounmpo performs on the court docket, suggesting that, just like the two-time league MVP and 2021 NBA Finals MVP, Holmgren is able to taking part in many roles inside a rotation and that he is considerably positionless.
In Hartenstein's phrases, he is basically simply “out there” on the ground making performs in a mess of the way.
This needs to be extraordinarily encouraging to hear for Thunder followers, as a significant concern since Oklahoma City signed the previous Knicks huge has been how he, a standard 5, can work alongside Holmgren, additionally a pure heart.
Over the months since his arrival, Chet has been fairly vocal about his religion within the league's latest 7-foot duo meshing, saying that “it opens up more possibilities to play different styles” for each him and the workforce as a complete.
Now, Hartenstein has dropped his two cents into the dialog, which ought to solely additional encourage followers that the pair are assured of their potential to coexist and, in flip, enhance Oklahoma City's frontcourt presence heading into what's hoped to be a affluent 2024-25 season.
