NBA Rumors: Isaiah Hartenstein unlikely to be re-signed by Knicks after Bridges trade

NBA Rumors: The New York Knicks are unlikely to re-sign Isaiah Hartenstein after making the big move for Mikal Bridges.

On the eve of the 2024 NBA Draft, the New York Knicks made a blockbuster move via trade for Mikal Bridges. In what has been unanimously praised so far, New York sent a deal centered around five future first-round picks to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Bridges. In what will be viewed as the team adding the final piece of their championship puzzle, the Knicks are naturally going to emerge next season as one of the favorites in the Eastern Conference.

For as excited as the fan base may be at the moment, as they should be, the move for Bridges will likely have an impact on New York's other offseason plans. While New York is still expected to aggressively push to re-sign OG Anunoby, that may not be the case anymore for Isaiah Hartenstein.

In the words of Knicks reporter Ian Begley, it's become increasingly unlikely that New York is going to be able to re-sign Hartenstein after the move for Bridges.

Why Isaiah Hartenstein is likely to move on from the Knicks this offseason

In what will be his first real big payday in the NBA, it's not fair to expect Hartenstein to take less to stay with the Knicks. As much as he might've come to love his time in New York, and how much the Knicks need him, this could be one of those scenarios that doesn't end up playing out in the end.

In a perfect world, the Knicks would be able to keep Hartenstein but with the big money he could be in line for and considering New York would still like to re-sign Anunoby after already acquiring Bridges, it's hard to imagine how New York will be able to balance it out in keeping everyone happy.

When teams make big moves, sacrifices are made. The Knicks just made a big move for another big-money player. That means a sacrifice has to be taken in response. That likely equates to Hartenstein leaving in free agency.

Maybe the Knicks are able to trade Mitchell Robinson and Hartenstein takes a slight discount but in the end, I can't see it happening that way. Either way, both sides should be well off. The Knicks will be improved next season with the addition of Bridges and Hartenstein should get his big-money deal, likely playing for another contender out there in a big role.