Isaiah Hartenstein came off the bench for the Oklahoma City Thunder for the first time in these playoffs – in the NBA Finals, of all places. The German center supported coach Mark Daigneault’s decision, but doesn’t want to make a big deal out of it.
Isaiah Hartenstein came off the bench for the first time in these playoffs, scoring nine points (3/5 FG) and grabbing nine rebounds for OKC in 17 minutes and was definitely a factor for OKC, even though they lost the game against Indiana somewhat surprisingly 110-111.
The decision to bench Hartenstein was controversial, but Hartenstein himself played it down. “Mark communicates great, he explained it to me the day before the game,” the 27-year-old said. “I’m doing whatever this team needs and I have confidence in Mark. It’s worked in the past and Cason Wallace is playing outstanding playoffs. It certainly wasn’t the reason we lost, because we actually had everything under control.”
OKC played part of the game without a center
OKC played with only one big man, Chet Holmgren, who had a weak night (6 points, 2/9 FG). At times, OKC even played without a single big man and relied on speed in the backcourt. “With Cason, we wanted to have another defender on the court for Haliburton and Nembhard,” explained coach Mark Daigneault. “We changed our starting five several times during the season, but not in the playoffs. That’s what the regular season is for, to establish those kinds of automatisms.”
The coach did not reveal whether the Thunder would make any further changes. Hartenstein said it would not matter to him. “I don’t lose my confidence when I play fewer minutes. I know I’m still one of the best big men in the league.”
Hartenstein: Parallels to the Nuggets series
The center compared the defeat to Game 1 of the Nuggets series, when they also conceded a late run and lost by a narrow margin. “We gave that game away too, because we dragged it out in the last six or eight minutes. We have to do better. When we’re ahead, we can’t take our foot off the gas.”
This was only the Thunder’s third defeat in the playoffs, and they have yet to lose two games in a row, which is why the Thunder and Hartenstein remain brimming with confidence. “We’ve always responded in the right way so far, and we’ll do the same in the next game.”
