The 2024-25 NBA regular season begins next week. All 30 teams have fresh hopes in what they hope is their year. Preseason basketball starts on October 4 and ends on Friday, October 18. Last season, the Oklahoma City Thunder finished first in the Western Conference. However, they were bounced in the second round of the playoffs by the Mavericks.
OKC comes into the 2024-25 season as the betting favorite (+310) to win the Western Conference. The Thunder are 3-1 this preseason and play their final game on Thursday night vs. the Hawks. During a win on Tuesday night vs. the Nuggets, big man Isaiah Hartenstein suffered a small, non-displaced fracture in his left hand. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Hartenstein is set to miss five-to-six weeks due to injury. He’ll miss the first 20 games of the season for the Thunder.
The Thunder will be without Isaiah Hartenstein for the first five-to-six weeks of the 2024-25 season
Thunder say Isaiah Hartenstein suffered a small, non-displaced fracture in his left hand in Tuesday’s preseason game in Denver and will be re-evaluated in five-to-six weeks.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 17, 2024
Isaiah Hartenstein is set to play in his 7th professional season when he makes his debut for the Oklahoma City Thunder. That’s going to be some time after Hartenstein suffered a small hand fracture on Tuesday night. The big man was a free agent this offseason and left the Knicks to sign with the Thunder. Hartenstein received a three-year, $87 million deal. In 75 games and 49 starts for New York in 2023-24, Hartenstein averaged (7.8) points, (8.3) rebounds, (2.5) assists, (1.2) steals, and (1.1) blocks.
Oklahoma City had a small rebounding problem in 2023-24 and Hartenstein was brought in to help solve that issue. However, the big man will not be ready to go right away. Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams are both sidelined this preseason due to injury. Adding Hartenstein to that list is not ideal for the Thunder. If Jaylin Williams misses time, Chet Holmgren will be relied upon heavily to start the 2024-25 season. That will likely be the case regardless with Hartenstein set to miss time. The Thunder open their season on the road next Thursday vs. the Denver Nuggets.
