Isaiah Hartenstein can’t get in foul trouble. Not anymore. Not with Mitchell Robinson potentially out for the season, and certainly not until Jericho Sims returns from his ankle injury.
Hartenstein picked up two fouls in the opening two minutes against the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
His backup, Taj Gibson, is 38 years old. He’s good shape for someone who’d been on the couch until the Knicks called him when Robinson went down, but nothing can simulate the cardio exertion of full-speed NBA game.
“Yeah [bad fouls are] just something I can’t do, especially given the situation we’re in right now,” Hartenstein said after the 130-111 loss to the Bucks on Saturday. “Before when we had Mitch, we had the luxury of: if one guy was not doing good, or if one guy was in foul trouble, I don’t think there was any drop-off at all.
“So I feel like especially in a situation where Taj is coming back trying to get his feet under him, I can’t do that. I think I put us in a bad situation, especially against a team like that, where even when I come back, it’s kinda hard to get the lead back. So for the future, I’ve just gotta be better in that situation, and I will be better in that situation.”
Hartenstein says he has to be more cognizant of when and how he uses his fouls as a starter filling in for both Robinson and Sims rather than coming off the bench.
“Yeah I think it’s always different,” he said. “I think now, where I kinda have to be on the floor for 30-plus minutes, especially early [into a game], I can’t be aggressive where the referees are probably more likely to call tacky fouls. So that’s something I have to do a better job, but today it was two stupid fouls where sometimes you just have to let it go and not do it.”
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau opted to sub Hartenstein out of the game at the 10-minute mark and played Gibson the rest of the opening period.
“You’re just trying to buy some time. It was so early. That was the real issue,” he said. “And that’s the dilemma you wrestle with. And then he ends up with four and really he picked up one late, and it didn’t matter. But that’s your big concern.”
Depth at the center position continues to be an issue until Sims returns. Even when he does — and the Knicks are high on the bouncy third-year big man — his lack of experience could show itself in high-pressure games.
The Knicks also called Dmytro Skapintsev up from the G-League affiliate Westchester Knicks and signed him to a two-way deal after waiving guard Jaylen Martin earlier in the day.
Stapintsev is 7-foot-1 and averaged about six points, four rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 13 games in Westchester. The Knicks also won the 2023 G-League Winter Showcase. Stapintsev had six points, two rebounds and two blocks off the bench in the 16-point victory.
The Knicks, of course, have applied for the Disabled Player Exception — which they will or will not be granted depending on how Robinson tests when he’s reviewed by independent league doctors. If those doctors believe his injury will sideline him until June 15, the NBA will grant the Knicks an exception worth half the value of his salary for the 2023-24 season, or $7.8 million.
That exception can be used in a trade or used to sign a free agent.
Despite Hartenstein’s poor fouls, Thibodeau said he believes his team can get the job done at the five rather than look for options elsewhere.
“That’s the challenge of the league. And look, Taj did a great job in the last game. We didn’t play well as a team today. I don’t wanna put it on any one player or anything like that,” Thibodeau said. “We’re capable of playing a lot better than we did. And so, whether it’s Taj or Julius is an option, D-Mo just got here. We have more than enough. We gotta do better.”
Only time will tell if those words hold true. The Knicks have until the Feb. 8 NBA Trade Deadline to strike a deal via trade. Afterwards, they will be relegated to signing free agents who likely have been sedentary much of the year.
