New York Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein struggled mightly in the team’s Game 4 blowout loss to the Indiana Pacers. And to make matters worse, he looked to suffer a shoulder injury after falling to the ground.
With so many key players already on the injury list, the Knicks could not afford to lose another player. But, Isaiah Hartenstein was able to fight through the shoulder ailment and get in the lineup for Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Like the rest of his teammates, Hartenstein was motivated by the blowout loss and wanted to get things back on track. He helped set the tone early, hitting the offensive glass with aggression. In the first quarter, he had more offensive rebounds than the Indiana Pacers had total rebounds.
New York was bludgeoning Indiana on the interior, getting back to their style of basketball. The Pacers beat them at their own game in Games 3 and 4, but the Knicks were able to get back on track in Game 5 as they upped the physicality and effort to another level.
Isaiah Hartenstein was a big part of that success on the interior. He finished the game with 17 rebounds, 12 of which came on the offensive glass. It was an impressive display, put into perspective by some numbers shared by Fred Katz of The Athletic.
How dominant was Hartenstein on the boards tonight?
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) May 15, 2024
29.3% of the time NY missed a shot when he was on the court, he got the rebound.
For perspective, if a TEAM averaged that number during the regular season, it would've been the ninth-best at offensive rebounding in the NBA.
The rebounding performance puts Hartenstein in an elite category as well. Also shared by Katz, he is the ninth player in NBA history to grab at least 12 offensive rebounds in a playoff game. Charles Oakley was the last New York Knicks player to do it on May 15th, 1994 against the Chicago Bulls.
Isaiah Hartenstein is the ninth player in NBA history to pull down 12 offensive rebounds in a playoff game.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) May 15, 2024
He's the first Knick to do it since Charles Oakley almost exactly 30 years ago, May 15, 1994, against the Bulls.
Rebounding wasn’t the only area in which Isaiah Hartenstein made an impact. His playmaking has been integral for New York, taking pressure off of Jalen Brunson to do everything offensively for the team.
In Game 5, he recorded five assists, which put him in a category of his own. According to Tommy Beer, Isaiah Hartenstein is the second player in NBA Playoff history to record 12+ offensive rebounds and 5+ assists. The other is Hall of Famer Moses Malone.
Per @bball_ref,
— Tommy Beer (@TommyBeer) May 15, 2024
Isaiah Hartenstein is just the second player in NBA history to grab 12+ offensive rebounds and dish out 5+ assists in a playoff game.
The other is Moses Malone (April of 1982) https://t.co/Tx2hgDr2Aq
When the New York Knicks are getting contributions like that around Brunson, they are going to be hard to beat. Another repeat like that in Game 6 and the Knicks will be advancing to face the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!