Knicks Considering 2 Veteran Centers After Losing Isaiah Hartenstein: Insider

Getty Isaiah Hartenstein, New York Knicks

The New York Knicks are considering adding a veteran center as they search for depth at the position in the wake of Isaiah Hartenstein‘s departure in free agency, according to SNY’s Ian Begley.

Begley named two veteran centers as names to watch.

“You have to think the Knicks are at least considering veteran bigs like JaVale McGee and Bismack Biyombo,” Begley wrote in his SNY’s mailbag on September 13. “Maybe they sign a veteran before the start of training camp.”

The Knicks are left with injury-prone Mitchell Robinson as the de-facto starter with the undersized Precious Achiuwa and the inexperienced Jericho Sims as his backups.

The 6-foot-8 Achiuwa was brought back on a one-year deal after the Knicks failed to sign the likes of Bruno Fernando, Omer Yurtseven and French Olympic breakout star Mathias Lessort.

Fernando signed with the Raptors. Yurtseven went for more guaranteed money in the Euroleague while the Knicks and Lessort failed to find a common ground on an agreement, according to Begley.

McGee, 36, is a championship veteran who has three NBA titles — two with the Golden State Warriors and one with the Los Angeles Lakers. The 7-foot center averaged 4.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 46 games for the Sacramento Kings last season.

On the other hand, the 6-foot-8 Biyombo is a great rebounder for his size. He is averaging 5.9 rebounds in just 19.5 minutes in the NBA.

Isaiah Hartenstein Left a Big Hole

The Knicks tried their best to retain Hartenstein but were only limited to what they offered due to his early Bird rights. Ultimately, he left the Knicks, signing a three-year, $87 million with the Oklahoma City Thunder in free agency.

His departure weakened the Knicks’ center rotation, which Hollinger believes could impact the Knicks’ ability to contend.

“I can’t rate them the best defensive team in the NBA without Isaiah Hartenstein and with the injury-prone Robinson as the only rotation-caliber big man,” The Athletic’s John Hollinger said in a discussion with his colleague and Knicks beat reporter Fred Katz on August 5.

The Knicks will sorely miss the Jalen Brunson-Hartenstein two-man game, which helped them clinch the No. 2 seed in the East after Randle went down with a shoulder injury in late January. But the hope is, a healthy Randle will be a much more potent pick-and-roll partner for Brunson.

On the defensive end, the Knicks are betting on OG Anunoby‘s return and the addition of Mikal Bridges to lessen the opponents’ drive to the basket, mitigating the impact of losing Hartenstein’s rim protection.

Julius Randle as Small-Ball Center

Katz surmised that the Knicks’ band-aid solution would be to use Julius Randle as a small-ball center in spurts.

“Randle could jump into the role Isaiah Hartenstein played so effectively a season ago, fielding dump-offs from Brunson and heading downhill with three teammates and only three defenders in front of him,” Katz wrote on August 21. “That’s an advantage for the Knicks. If Randle is playing center, meaning Mitchell Robinson is not present to clog up the middle, an action like this becomes even more dangerous than the ones with Hartenstein, considering Randle’s All-Star ball skills and the top-notch shooters that could surround him.”

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau has shied away from using Randle as a small-ball center when Obi Toppin was still with the Knicks. However, with strong perimeter defenders in Mikal Bridges and Anunoby, who can slide on the defensive end guarding centers, Thibodeau might be more open to playing Randle as a center in small-ball offense.