Last offseason, New York Knicks fans saw Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart in action at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. The United States' finish was disappointing, but at least fans didn't have to wait until NBA preseason to see a couple of their favorite Knicks in action.
This summer, the 2024 Olympics will be held in France. Brunson and Hart were listed as finalists for the United States roster, but the former was the only one with a shot at securing one of the 12 spots. However, Brunson wasn't listed when the USA Basketball Men's National Team was announced.
It turns out that Brunson isn't the only Knick to be snubbed from a spot at the Olympics. Isaiah Hartenstein expressed his interest in representing Germany but said he didn't think he'd be invited to the Olympics "under any circumstances." Unfortunately, he was right.
"I definitely want to play [for the German NT] in the future. If I'm invited and fit, then I'll definitely play," Hartenstein said back in December, via NTV. "But they're doing a good job now, so you can't complain about that. They've now won gold and want to probably perform with the same team again. I don't think I'll be invited to the Olympics under any circumstances."Hartenstein, via BasketNews
Isaiah Hartenstein won't represent Germany at 2024 Paris Olympics
Germany's team includes four current NBA players: Dennis Schroder, Daniel Theis, Moritz Wagner, and Franz Wagner.
Hartenstein was born in Oregon, but his family moved to Germany in 2008 because of his father's professional basketball career. Hartenstein's father is a German-American who was born in Mainz.
The 26-year-old center could easily outperform several players on Germany's extended roster (like Theis), so seeing him in action in late July/August would be nice. Like he said, though, Germany stuck with the players who won gold at the World Cup last summer.
At least he can look forward to the payday he'll get this summer in free agency. Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer reported Hartenstein could make upwards of $100 million. The most the Knicks can offer him is a four-year, $72.5 million deal.
Who knows, maybe the center will be on a new NBA team when the Olympics start. Hopefully, that won't be the case, but no one could blame Hartenstein for following the money if that happens.
Maybe in the future, the big man's wish of representing Germany will come true!