The Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-88 on Tuesday night to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference finals.
Isaiah Hartenstein, who is vying to become just the second German after Dirk Nowitzki to win an NBA title, had 12 points and 5 rebounds on the night.
“At the beginning, we got the shots we wanted, we just didn’t make them. A few layups missed,” Hartenstein said post-match. “Once our offense found its footing, we took our game to the next level.”
‘NBA always No. 1’
German fans are hoping that not only will he win this year’s NBA title, but that he will represent Germany at the next Olympic Summer Games, Los Angeles 2028.
“The NBA will always be No. 1 for me,” Hartenstein has always said when asked about his future with the national team. This is why he missed out on German basketball’s major successes in recent years: bronze at the 2022 European Championship, gold at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, and fourth place at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Gordon Herbert, the man who guided Germany to those successes, had made it clear when he took the job in 2021, that he would only consider players who were committed to the national team. Hartenstein simply didn’t meet Herbert’s criteria. The last of his 19 appearances for Germany came in 2018.
However, in an April interview with the German weekly SportBild, Hartenstein said he was still open to playing for his country.
“I definitely want to play at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Regarding this year’s European Championship and the 2027 World Cup, we’ll have to see how far we get in the playoffs and how my body feels,” he said.
“The NBA always comes first for me.”
Father as a coach
Hartenstein was born on May 5, 1998, in Eugene, Oregon, to a German father and an American mother. He holds dual citizenship, so he was also eligible to play for the United States. He chose Germany – the country where he grew up as a basketball player.
When he was 11, his family moved to the small town of Quakenbrück in northern Germany, after his father Florian, a center, had signed to play for Bundesliga-Basketball club, the Artland Dragons. Florian later worked as a youth coach for the club, where one of his players was his son.
“I put him at a guard position as a big man (213 cm, 7 ft) so he can work on dribbling, passing more. I think it helped him later on to be more versatile,” Florian told the online portal “The Undefeated.”
Speaking out against racism
Many initially didn’t believe the two were father and son due to Florian Hartenstein’s darker skin.
“I know I am half-Black, but you can’t really see by my skin tone,” Isaiah Hartenstein told “The Undefeated.”
“Sometimes they laugh and say, ‘It’s not possible.’ And then they see my dad and kind of say, ‘OK, we understand.'”
Isaiah Hartenstein, certainly isn’t one to let racist comments go unchallenged.
“I tell them that it is not right what they are saying,” Hartenstein said. “Even if I wasn’t part Black, it’s not right. Everyone is their own person. It’s not about skin color. It’s about your personality, what’s inside.”
Cashing in on free agency
At 16, Isaiah Hartenstein played his first Bundesliga game for the Artland Dragons. In 2016, he moved to top Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunus. A year later, he declared for the NBA draft and was selected 43rd overall by the Houston Rockets.
Hartenstein spent a year with the Rockets’ farm team, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League before making his NBA debut in October 2018. Over the next few seasons, he also had stints with the Denver Nuggets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers, and the New York Knicks. In 2024 he signed as a free agent with the Oklahoma City Thunder. His 3-year, $87 million (€77 million) contract makes him one of Germany’s best-earning athletes.
The 27-year-old has a large image of Jesus tattooed on his right arm.
“My faith is very important to me and gives me a lot of strength,” Hartenstein told “SportBild.”
“When I was at the top and signed my contract with OKC, my faith helped me stay grounded.”
In mid-2023, the basketball star married US model and influencer Kourtney Kellar, and their son Elijah was born a year later. “For me, family comes first,” he stressed.
Even before the NBA.
This article was originally published in German.
