Why are the Thunder re-signing Isaiah Hartenstein through 2028-29?

Oklahoma City is not letting its big man get away.

Isaiah Hartenstein intends to sign a new three-year deal to stay with the Thunder through 2028-29, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Friday night. With what he has already made in Oklahoma City, the commitment reaches five years and $134 million guaranteed.

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The Thunder had possessed a $28.5 million team option for Hartenstein next season, but he now takes a new multiyear deal at a lower yearly number. That matters in Oklahoma City right now. The Thunder are staring at a brutal tax bill once the max extensions for Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams land, and spreading Hartenstein’s money over more years is how they keep the band together without paying a record-setting penalty.

The Thunder are still looking at one of the most expensive rosters in the league.

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NBA draft No. 1 picks since 1990: From Derrick Coleman to AJ Dybantsa

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NBA draft No. 1 picks since 1990: From Derrick Coleman to AJ Dybantsa

The Thunder signed Hartenstein in the summer of 2024 to a three-year, $87 million contract, and people thought it was an overpay. But he gave Oklahoma City a center who rebounds, protects the rim and can pass, and the Thunder won the franchise’s first championship in Oklahoma City in 2025.

This spring, Hartenstein made San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama in the Western Conference finals work hard before the Thunder fell in Game 7. He averaged 9.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists on the season.

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The 28-year-old German was taken 43rd in the 2017 draft. Free agency begins June 30 at 6 p.m. ET.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why are the Thunder re-signing Isaiah Hartenstein through 2028-29?