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The Oklahoma City Thunder is the biggest threat to steal Isaiah Hartenstein away from the New York Knicks this summer, according to Bleacher Report’s salary cap guru Eric Pincus.
After capturing the Western Conference’s top seed, the Thunder’s lack of size was exposed in their second-round playoff loss to the Dallas Mavericks in six games. The Mavericks’ rim-running rookie Dereck Lively finished at plus-26 in the series-clinching Game 6.
With $33 million in cap space to spend in the offseason, the Thunder would be looking to add more size next to the lanky Chet Holmgren.
“The Thunder are the obvious team with cap space to outspend New York. They need additional size up front, and Hartenstein is still only 26. It makes a lot of sense on paper, but Oklahoma City has to decide that Hartenstein is the right fit,” Pincus wrote.
Hartenstein, a floor-spacing big man with solid passing skill, rebounding and rim protection, could be the missing piece to the Thunder puzzle.
While the Knicks can go over the cap to re-sign Hartenstein using his early Bird rights, the maximum they could offer is a four-year, $72.5 million deal, according to ESPN’s front office insider Bobby Marks.
“Any interested rival team will have the ability to double that amount — as much as $151.6 million over the same four-year length,” Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer wrote on May 31.
Isaiah Hartenstein Thanks Knicks Fans
Hartenstein thanked the Knicks fans after his career season that culminated with a second-round playoff loss where he started in all postseason games.
“Year 6,” Hartenstein captioned the June 2 video. “Thank you NY for making it so special!! Time to get back to work #foe.”
Did Hartenstein just send his farewell message to the Knicks fans?
On April 5, Hartenstein told Hoopshype’s Michael Scotto that he would return to New York if the Knicks match any offer he would get in free agency.
“I know I’ve put myself in a great position to get a little upgrade,” Hartenstein told Scotto. “Right now, I’m focused on the Knicks. I love it here, and hopefully, we’ll figure something out, but at the end of the day, business is business.”
But when asked if he’d stay in New York, provided they matched any offer he received, Hartenstein had a curt reply.
“Yes.”
It will be an interesting summer for the Knicks, who came one game and an injury or two away from reaching the Eastern Conference Finals.