Isaiah Hartenstein: PF/C – Zalgiris, 19 years old
Measurables: 7-0, 220 lbs., 7-2 wingspan
Strengths: Playmaking, Offensive Potential, Athleticism, Aggressiveness
Weaknesses: Raw, Turnovers, Consistency, Plays out of Control, Defense
Conclusion: Hartenstein came into this season as one of the hottest international prospects of his class along with Lauri Markkanen. Unfortunately due to inconsistent playing opportunities with Zalgiris, his stock has dropped him out of the lottery discussion. Isaiah’s strengths are his combination of size, athleticism, and playmaking. His handle is impressive for a legit seven-footer and he has the semblance of a kid who can develop an outside shot. That would translate to a stretch 4 that could run the offense for short bursts, similarly to how the Clippers use Blake Griffin. The difference between why Griffin was the No. 1 pick and Hartenstein will fall between 15-30 in this draft is two-fold; Blake was a top-1 percentile athlete, and he dominated his competition at Oklahoma. Hartenstein enters the draft as a block of marble requiring the team drafting him to dedicate time and coaching to figure out how to sculpt him into a viable NBA player.
Isaiah is an aggressive competitor that wears his emotions on his sleeve and may struggle for a couple years to find his role. On the bright side, even if nothing falls in place for him during his first few seasons in the league, Isaiah should profile out as similar to Donatas Motiejunas. Besides the obvious lefty comparison, Hartenstein also lacks an elite skill but does enough things well to deserve playing time once he polishes his rough edges. Investing in him requires either stashing him for several seasons or convincing him to emotionally come to terms with riding the pine for a while.
Projection: Big Board #14, Mock Draft #22
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