Knicks Fans Are Gonna Enjoy Isaiah Hartenstein
The only player in NBA history to match or exceed Hartenstein's per-36 minute averages of 4.7 assists, 9.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 2.3 blocks over a full season was Bill Walton in 1977-78.
Hmm, not much to talk about today. It's not like the entire league exploded yesterday or anything…
We'll get into the league-altering nonsense with the Nets later this offseason (let's just say the Basketball Gods remember stuff) and recap the rest of the free-agent signings shortly as well, but today we'll concentrate on New York's two additions, in particular, their newest center.
Since I detailed what Jalen Brunson brings to the table offensively in Wednesday's newsletter (defense, or lack thereof, will be a story for another day), let's zero in on the other guy the Knicks added to the roster Thursday night, Isaiah Hartenstein. Shams Charania reported immediately after the official start of free agency that the Knicks had agreed to terms with Hartenstein on a fully-guaranteed two-year, $16 million contract.
Although he obviously has received far less hype and attention than Mr. Brunson, Hartenstein possesses an enticing upside and a versatile skill set that should enable him to make an immediate impact in New York.
Hartenstein was born in Eugene, Oregon (his parents met at the University of Oregon) but spent much of his childhood in Germany, as his father, Florian, who is of German descent, played professional basketball in his home country.
After emerging as one of Europe's best young players during his late teenage years, Isaiah declared for the 2017 NBA draft and was selected by the Rockets with the 43rd overall pick.
Despite being sidelined his entire rookie year due to various injuries, he flashed some glimpses of unique talent over his three seasons in Houston. However, at just 20 years of age, he couldn't carve out a consistent role on a team competing for a championship.
It is worth noting that Hartenstein did lead the Rio Grande Valley Vipers to the G-League title in 2019. After finishing the regular season averaging 19.4 points, 14.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 2.0 blocks on 62.2% shooting in 26 games for the Vipers, he took his game to another level in the playoffs. In the three-game Finals series vs. the Long Island Nets, Hartenstein averaged a whopping 28.0 points (on 51% shooting), 15.7 rebounds, 4.3 treys, 2.3 assists, and 1.6 blocked shots. He was named G-League Finals MVP for his dominating performance. In Game 2 of that series, Hartenstein poured in 33 points and, remarkably, knocked down eight of his nine three-point attempts.
After stops in Denver and Cleveland during the 2020-21 campaign, Hartenstein signed a one-year deal with the Clippers last September. Due to a slew of injuries that thinned out LA's frontcourt, Hartenstein had an opportunity to earn consistent playing time for the first time in his career. And he most certainly made the most of it.
Over 68 appearances (all off the bench) for Los Angeles in 2021-22, Hartenstein averaged 8.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 blocks in another 17.9 minutes per game.
While his traditional stats were relatively solid, his advanced metrics were incredibly impressive.
Consider this: Hartenstein was one of only five players 24 or younger to post a PER north of 21 and a Box Plus/Minus above 4.0 last season. The other four players in this club were Trae Young, Luka Dončić, Jayson Tatum, and Ja Morant.
Hartenstein's ability to post outstanding advanced stats is due mainly to the remarkable versatility in his game. A 7-feet and 250 pounds, he possesses a rare combination of size, quickness, strength and athleticism, combined with uncanny posing ability and a high basketball IQ.
Defensively, Hartenstein was one of the league's best rim protectors last season. Remarkably, according to NBA.com tracking data, opposing players converted just 47.5% of their attempts at the basket when defended by Hartenstein. That mark led the entire league, ahead of Jaren Jackson Jr, Rudy Gobert, Nic Claxton, Robert Williams III and Jarrett Allen, who ranked second through sixth, respectively.
Unlike most bigs that patrol the paint, Hartenstein has fluid hips, which allow him to do a decent job staying in front of quicker players on the perimeter when he gets caught on screens up top. Here we see him keep pace with the aforementioned Jalen Brunson, one of the NBA's craftiest guards.
Last season, the Clippers allowed just 105 points per 100 possessions with Hartenstein on the court. That number jumped to 109.8 when he was on the bench.
Offensively, Hartenstein is still a work in progress, but he showcased undeniably encouraging signs of improvement in LA.
His assist rate of 19.3% ranked fourth behind all qualified centers in 2021-22, trailing only Nikola Jokić, Joel Embiid and Domantas Sabonis. Hartenstein averaged a whopping 4.7 assists per-36 minutes. The only other players to average more than 4.5 dimes to go along with at least nine rebounds and one steal per-36 mins last season were Draymond Green, Nikola Jokić, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Steven Adams and Luka Dončić. Among those six players, Hartenstein was the only one to average more than two blocks/36.
Looking for some historical context? According to Basketball-Reference, the only other qualified player in NBA history to average at least 4.7 assists, 9.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 2.3 blocks per-36 minutes throughout an entire season was Bill Walton during his MVP campaign in 1977-78.
Hartenstein's ability to find open teammates and finish in the paint enabled him to stymie defenses as a roll man in pick-and-roll plays last season. According to Synergy Sports, he averaged 1.26 points per possession in such situations. He has the size to overpower smaller defenders around the rim and also has a nice little floater in his bag. Hartenstein hit 55 of the 93 floaters he attempted last season. Shooting 60% on such shots helps keep defenses honest.
(As an aside, Brunson was one of the NBA's most effective P&R ball handlers last season, so we can expect the newest Knicks' to hook up early and often at the top of the key, especially considering New York has run pick-and-rolls more frequently than all but two teams since Thibs arrived two years ago.)
And we haven't even yet discussed Hartenstein's potential three-point prowess. The good news: Isaiah (can we call him Zeke?) shot a scorching 46.7% from downtown last season. The reality check: He attempted just 30 triples, knocking down 14 of them, and has made a grand total of only 18 treys in his NBA career.
While we can't classify Hartenstein as a bonafide stretch-5 just yet, New York's coaching staff will obviously spend plenty of time fine-tuning his outside jumper. If he can develop into even a league-average (or slightly below league-average) three-point shooter, that would take his overall game to another level.
(Speaking of offseason workouts, Hartenstein is a member of famed trainer Drew Hanlen's "Pure Sweat Fam," which also boasts RJ Barrett among its ranks. Hanlen confirmed to me Thursday night that Hartenstein and Barrett will begin working out together in joint sessions starting next week.)
The Clippers scored over 112 points per 100 possessions with Hartenstein on the court last season. That number dipped to 107.2 when he was off the floor. Hartenstein's Net Rating of +7.0 was the highest plus/minus mark among all Clippers rotation regulars (Paul George ranked second at +4.2).
And remember that Hartenstein just celebrated his 24th birthday last month. He has appeared in a total of only 165 NBA contests. With starting center Mitchell Robinson now locked up for another four years, Hartenstein will have minimal pressure on him heading into next season.
Furthermore, over the final month (13 games) of the 2021-22 season, he was playing the best basketball of his career, averaging 11.1 points, 6.5 boards, 3.9 dimes and 1.0 blocks in 23 minutes a night, while shooting a mind-boggling 60.9% from the floor, 52.9% from downtown, and 85.3% from the free-throw line.
Sum it all up, and you can see why Clippers fans were angry that L.A. was unable to re-sign the promising young big man, and why I expect Hartenstein to quickly emerge as a fan favorite inside Madison Square Garden.