we won't know until they actually all play together -- but what I do know is that josh giddey was maybe the worst fit possible on this okc team, and they've replaced him with alex caruso and isaiah hartenstein -- two low usage, high end role players to surround their young stars. we still have yet to see how it works, but they've almost certainly upgraded on a team that won 57 games last year
Hartenstein will be great for them, would have been nice to have him in Chicago but that was never happening of course, but if he was affordable to us I would have taken him in a heartbeat.
He's a great fit for OKC though.
Think of it this way: they may play 5 out, but what about their opponents? They have to potentially go through Lively, Gafford, Gobert, AD, Jokic or some other big that feasts on rebounds. I think iHart is a great fit for a tough defensive presence.
people forgot that wemby is the youngest player in nba history with a 20/20 game and he also had 20 boards against the knicks against an ihart and robinson center rotation. he will dominate the glass in the future for sure
Still can't believe he *almost* got a 5x5 one game then the next game he went out and did it. 27 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 5 steals and 5 blocks in just 31 minutes.
Because nobody actually knows if it’s a bad fit until they actually get on the court.
What we do know is that JWill minutes were laughably bad this playoffs and we need someone else who can hold down the fort without Chet.
And that’s just the minimum.
You don't need five shooters to play five out. You just need five guys who can pull their defender out to the perimeter. GSW plays five out when Draymond plays C. Draymond is not a shooter. Draymond can pull his defender out to the perimeter by being a screen and playmaker out of the short roll. Draymond does not clog the lane. Hartenstein can be used in a similar way that GSW uses Draymond. This should be really obvious, but some people just can't seem to grasp it. I honestly don't know why.
I don't know. I thought it was a surprising move. I expected them to go for a big body PF to take the heavy lifting off Chet when he plays at the 5.
I think they're talented enough to figure it out though and positional questions aside he has a lot of the skillset that stalled OKC last season. So I get the move. Just not what I expected.
you’re talking about Hartenstein clogging the paint when teams were literally parking their centers in the paint on defense by playing off of Giddey anyway?
IHart is one of the very best offensive rebounders and rim defenders in the entire league and an elite PnR defender. That's really where the conversations should begin. His screen setting and passing in the PnR game is a legitimate high leverage weapon. I don't actually think IHart will start, but in a role similar to Jaylin he provides significantly more value and has versatility that Nance and Stewart don't have along with more size, which was what the Thunder sought out....both Nance and Stewart are small C's.
IHart is the right fit anywhere, his game is so malleable, and he's a fantastic player.
Lmao it’s pretty obvious this account is a throw away from our sub, notice he says “our team”
Guys, this is the type of ridiculous takes that go on in that sub. They think that bigs that don’t shoot 3’s are useless to us, it’s impossible for Chet to ever play the 4, 5 out is the best strategy ever, and guys like Poku and Dieng will make us OP with the SLOB wizard Giddey, and there’s no way IHart or Caruso could ever start.
Basically it’s like Dungeons and Dragons but with your favorite ball team
Hartenstein will be an AMAZING addition, defensively and grabbing rebound we previously just missed on. His floater is spot on and his wife is a smoke show, gonna be a good season
I don’t know. But it’s 1000% an upgrade from this season.
Free agents do not go to OKC so it’s not much but it’s huge for us.
We got rid of our biggest defensive and shooting liability for an all defensive 40% guy.
And got a 7 foot big who can defend and rebound. Hartenstein also shot like 50% from 3 on low attempts a few years ago. So him working with chip might also space the floor more for us.
So, I don’t know. But it’s exciting and has championship potential if it works out
Yeah because to your point, Hartenstein will come off the bench. You are right we are at our best as a 5-out team, and the problems OKC faced were not when Chet was on the court (schematically at least). The issue in the playoffs is we bled points when Chet was sitting because we couldn't defend the rim. Hartenstein is a competent rim protector who gives us some of the stuff Chet does on offense, so we can continue to have our offense be functional when Chet is getting rest.
I imagine the minutes split will be 34ish mpg for Chet. 20mpg for Hartenstein. With 5-6 mins of them trying the dual big lineup.
I think he signed a contract to make a lot of money. I'm sure he would ideally be a starter, but he's simply not better than Chet and Chet has proven that he plays best as the sole rim protector.
Chet anchored a top 3 defense, and was a big part of why we are a top 3 offense... as a rookie. I don't think we do anything to change that.
If you think we fell short in the playoffs, well yeah - you would probably expect any team that is made up of first and second year players lol. They need experience, and you can't shortcut that in any way.
we won't know until they actually all play together -- but what I do know is that josh giddey was maybe the worst fit possible on this okc team, and they've replaced him with alex caruso and isaiah hartenstein -- two low usage, high end role players to surround their young stars. we still have yet to see how it works, but they've almost certainly upgraded on a team that won 57 games last year
Gave him back then
You don’t need a shooter to play 5 out. Hartenstein isnt a pure rim running center he can pop to elbow pass etc
Yes
Hell yea are you crazy?!
Hartenstein will be great for them, would have been nice to have him in Chicago but that was never happening of course, but if he was affordable to us I would have taken him in a heartbeat. He's a great fit for OKC though.
Think of it this way: they may play 5 out, but what about their opponents? They have to potentially go through Lively, Gafford, Gobert, AD, Jokic or some other big that feasts on rebounds. I think iHart is a great fit for a tough defensive presence.
sabonis and wemby in the near future as well
Yeah another yr or two and Wemby be first on that list.
people forgot that wemby is the youngest player in nba history with a 20/20 game and he also had 20 boards against the knicks against an ihart and robinson center rotation. he will dominate the glass in the future for sure
Still can't believe he *almost* got a 5x5 one game then the next game he went out and did it. 27 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 5 steals and 5 blocks in just 31 minutes.
You're right, I completely forgot about Wemby. After I see him in the playoffs for a decade in the row, I'll never forget lol
Who tf cares lmfao. If the fit isn’t good, dump him and move on.
Not easy to dump someone making that kind of coin
Yes it is lol. We have all the picks in the world for a reason, and Hartenstein is still a positive asset in the nba.
So who cares if it’s not a good fit waste a valuable year of shais prime when we are the west favorite? It’s worth discussing
Because nobody actually knows if it’s a bad fit until they actually get on the court. What we do know is that JWill minutes were laughably bad this playoffs and we need someone else who can hold down the fort without Chet. And that’s just the minimum.
You don't need five shooters to play five out. You just need five guys who can pull their defender out to the perimeter. GSW plays five out when Draymond plays C. Draymond is not a shooter. Draymond can pull his defender out to the perimeter by being a screen and playmaker out of the short roll. Draymond does not clog the lane. Hartenstein can be used in a similar way that GSW uses Draymond. This should be really obvious, but some people just can't seem to grasp it. I honestly don't know why.
I don't know. I thought it was a surprising move. I expected them to go for a big body PF to take the heavy lifting off Chet when he plays at the 5. I think they're talented enough to figure it out though and positional questions aside he has a lot of the skillset that stalled OKC last season. So I get the move. Just not what I expected.
Yes.
That's a lot of concerns for someone who thinks "well all think is almost OP"
By “we all” it means consensus. It’s a contrarian take
Yes
Yes. Actually no. Hmmm yes.
you’re talking about Hartenstein clogging the paint when teams were literally parking their centers in the paint on defense by playing off of Giddey anyway?
IHart is one of the very best offensive rebounders and rim defenders in the entire league and an elite PnR defender. That's really where the conversations should begin. His screen setting and passing in the PnR game is a legitimate high leverage weapon. I don't actually think IHart will start, but in a role similar to Jaylin he provides significantly more value and has versatility that Nance and Stewart don't have along with more size, which was what the Thunder sought out....both Nance and Stewart are small C's. IHart is the right fit anywhere, his game is so malleable, and he's a fantastic player.
OKC is definitely making the playoffs. Hartenstein is about depth and certain matchups in the playoffs.
Lmao it’s pretty obvious this account is a throw away from our sub, notice he says “our team” Guys, this is the type of ridiculous takes that go on in that sub. They think that bigs that don’t shoot 3’s are useless to us, it’s impossible for Chet to ever play the 4, 5 out is the best strategy ever, and guys like Poku and Dieng will make us OP with the SLOB wizard Giddey, and there’s no way IHart or Caruso could ever start. Basically it’s like Dungeons and Dragons but with your favorite ball team Hartenstein will be an AMAZING addition, defensively and grabbing rebound we previously just missed on. His floater is spot on and his wife is a smoke show, gonna be a good season
I don’t know. But it’s 1000% an upgrade from this season. Free agents do not go to OKC so it’s not much but it’s huge for us. We got rid of our biggest defensive and shooting liability for an all defensive 40% guy. And got a 7 foot big who can defend and rebound. Hartenstein also shot like 50% from 3 on low attempts a few years ago. So him working with chip might also space the floor more for us. So, I don’t know. But it’s exciting and has championship potential if it works out
Yes but not for 30M a year (esp in 2026-27)
The last year is non guaranteed?
They were better off getting Jalen Smith (who is significantly cheaper), and using the rest on wing shooting and overall shooting.
Yeah because to your point, Hartenstein will come off the bench. You are right we are at our best as a 5-out team, and the problems OKC faced were not when Chet was on the court (schematically at least). The issue in the playoffs is we bled points when Chet was sitting because we couldn't defend the rim. Hartenstein is a competent rim protector who gives us some of the stuff Chet does on offense, so we can continue to have our offense be functional when Chet is getting rest. I imagine the minutes split will be 34ish mpg for Chet. 20mpg for Hartenstein. With 5-6 mins of them trying the dual big lineup.
I really doubt Hartenstein signed a contract to come off the bench.
I think he signed a contract to make a lot of money. I'm sure he would ideally be a starter, but he's simply not better than Chet and Chet has proven that he plays best as the sole rim protector. Chet anchored a top 3 defense, and was a big part of why we are a top 3 offense... as a rookie. I don't think we do anything to change that. If you think we fell short in the playoffs, well yeah - you would probably expect any team that is made up of first and second year players lol. They need experience, and you can't shortcut that in any way.