NBA Rumors: Knicks In "Serious" Danger of Losing Hartenstein to Western Power

The New York Knicks created a monster this season when they inserted Isaiah Hartenstein into the starting lineup during the extended absence (again) of center Mitchell Robinson. Hartenstein turned himself into a vital piece of the Knicks lineup, and now, as a free agent, he's due for what some say could be a $100 million offer.

And according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post, the Oklahoma City Thunder are the team that could "seriously complicate" the Knicks plans to keep the 7-footer.

OKC has ‘real’ interest in Isaiah Hartenstein, per @SbondyNBA

“The Thunder is viewed by NBA sources as the top threat to pry Hartenstein away from the Knicks in free agency…One league source speculated the Thunder would offer a short-term deal (such as two years) with a high… pic.twitter.com/Szi5XBUcOs
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 11, 2024

“The Thunder is viewed by NBA sources as the top threat to pry Hartenstein away from the Knicks in free agency…One league source speculated the Thunder would offer a short-term deal (such as two years) with a high salary, providing both sides with long-term flexibility.”

Hartenstein set career highs averaging 25 minutes per game, and 8.3 rebounds. He added 7.8 points along with 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocked shots.

The Thunder were a Cinderella surprise team in the regular season, finishing with the top seed in the Western Conference. But their playoff run ended early, largely due to a lack of rebounding. They have "real" interest in Hartenstein to help fill that void, and they have the cap space to make him a huge offer.

As for the Knicks, if that were to happen, they would have to hope that the injury-prone Robinson is able to return to full health and play much more than the 31 games he played this past season (he only played 59 the year before).