OKC Thunder Announce Isaiah Hartenstein Injury, Re-Evaluated in a Week

The Oklahoma City Thunder have announced that Isaiah Hartenstein suffered an injury against the Philadelphia 76ers and will be re-evaluated in one week. The Thunder will have a tough time navigating this stretch without the big man.
Jan 10, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) reacts during the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Jan 10, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) reacts during the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
In this story:

The Oklahoma City Thunder will once again have to navigate through a stretch without each of their top two centers.

The Thunder announced on Wednesday evening that starting big man, Isaiah Hartenstein, will be out at least a week due to injury. At that time, he will be re-evaluated.

"Isaiah Hartenstein sustained a left soleus strain in last night’s game against Philadelphia.  He will be re-evaluated in approximately one week," The Oklahoma City Thunder announced on Wednesday.

This injury is described as a tear or stretch in the calf according to medical news today dot com. The Thunder say it happened during their Tuesday night affair against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Oklahoma City won that contest 118-102, Hartenstein logged 31 minutes, hauling in 16 rebounds, posting nine points and dishing out three assists.

The next game will be the toughest to manage with Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren on the shelf against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday in a National TV game. After that, the Thunder take on a beat up Dallas Mavericks team, a tanking Brooklyn Nets squad and a Utah Jazz team more focused on Cooper Flagg at the exact week mark from this release.

Oklahoma City does have Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams as healthy big men options, but will need to call on Jalen Williams and Alex Caruso to pitch in small ball minutes as well.

While the Thunder will make no excuses, a 2-2 week would be impressive given the injury struggles of this team. Anything past that would be icing on the cake.


Want to join the discussion? Like Thunder on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.


Published
Rylan Stiles
RYLAN STILES

Rylan Stiles is a credentialed media member covering the Oklahoma City Thunder. He hosts the Locked On Thunder Podcast, and is Lead Beat Writer for Inside the Thunder. Rylan is also an award-winning play-by-play broadcaster for the Oklahoma Sports Network.