For many Isaiah HartensteinIn his NBA career, it didn’t look like he had an $87 million contract going forward. That is the amount thunder released him in free agency after a breakthrough season in New York, but Hartenstein wasn’t always on the path to stardom. In an interview with Andscape’s Marc J. Spears, he talks about trying to establish himself as an NBA center while playing for five teams in his first five seasons.

“When I signed the contract (with Oklahoma City), it was special.” Hartenstein said. “I’m struggling through the NBA right now. Coming from the G League with the Rockets and continually getting sent down is kind of a testament to me. It was never easy. It wasn’t a relief, but it was an excitement. I didn’t feel like I could take my foot off the gas. The hard work finally paid off, even if it took a little longer than I thought. I was excited and motivated at the same time that I had proven myself.”

The Knicks hoped to re-sign Hartenstein, Spears said, and offered him a four-year contract worth $72.5 million. However, that couldn’t match the Thunder’s offer, which included a starting salary of $30 million, which was more than what he had earned in his previous six seasons combined.

“It was difficult for me to say goodbye. It wasn’t easy. I loved being out there and I loved my teammates.” Hartenstein said. “If I couldn’t go to a place like OKC, I don’t think I would have gone. But you also have to remember that at the end of the day this is a business. It wasn’t like I had a whole bunch of $100 million contracts before. I had to make sure my family was heterosexual. It was a crazy experience, from minimum contracts to a training camp contract with the Clippers. From then on it’s a good little journey. Often you don’t understand what you’re going through. But looking back now, I wouldn’t change a thing on or off the pitch.”

There’s more to Thunder:

• Luguentz there has been playing with a “mallet finger” after injuring his right pinky while battling for a loose ball in a Nov. 17 game, according to The Oklahoman’s Joel Lorenzi. He wears a splint on his finger around the clock and has experimented with tapes and bandages to ease the pain from tendon damage. “I do this for the team” he said. “That is the trust this team has placed in me since I started here and that is the approach we have taken. Every time you’re healthy, you have to go out and play. And that’s my mentality, that’s my approach. Especially when we have a great season like we have now, I just have to keep my foot on the pedal.”
• The Thunder create more three-point opportunities Shai Gilgeous Alexanderwho is making a career-high 6.3 shots per game from long range this season, Lorenzi noted in a separate story. On Thursday in Toronto, SGA attempted six three-pointers in the first quarter and was two short of his career-high 12 when he was taken out of the game in the third quarter because OKC had a big lead. “It’s a lot of fun” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “The process of getting better and adding something is the best feeling for me. … When it’s all said and done, I want to be a basketball player that doesn’t have any holes in my game.”
• Sportsnet.ca’s Michael Grange examines Gilgeous-Alexander’s chances of being named MVP after finishing fifth and second in voting the last two seasons.