Knicks Center Isaiah Hartenstein Starts to Live up to ‘Nikola Jokic Lite’ Monicker

Getty New York Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein celebrates during a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

A New York Knicks blowout victory in December against the defending champion Golden State Warriors opened the door for Isaiah Hartenstein to showcase his deft passing in an actual game to coach Tom Thibodeau.

The TNT broadcast crew marveled at the Knicks’ backup center’s crazy assists that could only be seen from the best point guards and the reigning back-to-back NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, the best passing big man in the history of the league.

“They call him ‘Jokic Lite,'” the TNT announcer said after Hartenstein threw an outlet pass to a streaking Miles McBride for an easy layup, a play similar to a football touchdown.

Only a few select big men in the NBA can whip and zip passes as Hartenstein did in that game. Jokic, who greatly influenced Hartenstein during their brief time together in Denver, is the best in the business.

Hence, they call Hartenstein “Jokic Lite.”

Hartenstein ended up with three assists, the first time he issued at least three since he had four on the season opener in Memphis.

Since that game against the Warriors, Hartenstein has already logged 10 games with at least three assists. He leads all backup centers with 65 assists during this span, per NBA.com stats.

As the season went on, Hartenstein’s role expanded from just the rim-diving center that Thibodeau initially wanted him to play to duplicate starting center Mitchell Robinson’s presence with the second unit. It also helped that his nagging Achilles pain in the early part of the season feels much better now.

Now he’s playing more often in his comfort zone, the high to mid-post, and finding cutters left and right.

“I think [Thibodeau] started to see that I was working more,” Hartenstein said after the Knicks beat the Wizards on April 2. “For me, I think especially at the beginning of the year, maybe guys didn’t really know to cut on certain situations, so I think now just guys are cutting, guys are making the right decision, and I always knew I was one of the best-passing bigs in the league. So I always knew I could do it.”

Hartenstein’s 1.1 assists per game this season still pales in comparison to what he did in his two previous stops — 2.4 assists per game with the Los Angeles Clippers last season and 2.5 assists per game with the Cleveland Cavaliers the year before — after learning from Jokic. But Hartenstein has come a long way and Thibodeau has grown comfortable letting his backup big man play to his strengths, which he often preached.

Isaiah Hartenstein Earns Massive Pay Raise

Hartenstein isn’t only happy because of Thibodeau’s growing trust in his play. After the Knicks officially clinched the playoff berth, Hartenstein also completed the “unlikely incentives” in the first year of a 2-year contract he signed in summer 2022.

The Knicks beat the preseason odds of 38.5 wins with the help of Hartenstein and he was rewarded for it.

Hartenstein earned a $350,000 playoff bonus to add to his earlier pair of $350,000 bonuses for 1,350 total minutes played and reaching 40 wins. His total incentives of $1.05 million raised his earnings this season to $8.8 million, a massive jump from his $1.7 million salary with the Los Angeles Clippers last season.

Knicks’ Solid Center Rotation

Hartenstein has formed a formidable tandem with Robinson for the Knicks, providing them with 48 minutes of solid rim protection and rebounding.

Robinson leads the league in box outs (3.1), offensive rebounding (4.3) and seventh in blocks per game (1.7) while Hartenstein leads all backup centers in box outs per game (2.0) and total offensive rebounds (189) and fourth in total blocks (57).

“I think when you look at what we’re getting out of our Center play right now it’s fantastic so I thought Mitch [Robinson] was terrific, I thought Isaiah [Hartenstein] was terrific,” Thibodeau said after their 118-109 win over the Wizards.