Isaiah Hartenstein Reflects on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Greatness

It’s hard not to marvel at Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 2024-25 season. From the statistics, to the highlights, and the sheer amount of wins he willed his team too, SGA’s season will go down as an all-time great one.

From an outsiders perspective, fans and media members were blown away by Gilgeous-Alexander’s greatness. But even his teammates took on the role of fans on occasion, watching him score in bunches. He made everyone on the team better, and that’s why Oklahoma City’s roster included a handful of career-years from important players.

One of those players was Isaiah Hartenstein, who was Oklahoma City’s prized signing of last summer. He was exactly what the Thunder needed, and certainly enjoyed playing alongside a talent like SGA. Hartenstein went on Paul George’s podcast, Podcast P, to dish on all things Gilgeous-Alexander.

"He has no ego,” Hartenstein said. “There's no, 'I'm just gonna score and make it about myself.' It's never that. There were even times at the beginning of the season when he threw me a pass when he got trapped, and I threw it to the next man to get a shot. I was like, 'Sorry, I'll finish it next time and give you an assist.' And he was like, 'I don't care. I just want to win, so do whatever you need.' Even when he's putting up those huge numbers, he's not searching for them. He's flowing, he’s trying to make the team as best as possible.

“Him playing on both sides of the court, I think that’s really underrated. He plays defense, you can’t just go pick on him… When you see that, it just gives us the push and the confidence that he’s going to do it on both sides of the court for sure.”

SGA’s defense was a common talking point during the MVP conversation. His offensive season was absolutely historic for a guard, and he didn’t just pull his weight defensively — he went above and beyond. He turned himself into one of the best perimeter defenders in the league, and became a complete positive on that side of the floor.

Gilgeous-Alexander has been tabbed as one of the most unselfish superstars in the NBA, but at times, even his teammates marveled at how he took over games and the shots he made.

“We as a team were just watching him, there was one game where he was just cooking,” Hartenstein said. “What I was saying before how he’s ego-less and there’s nothing going on, that game he was in his bag — it was like a game in Detroit. We were all on the bench like, that [expletive] is cold.”

The specific game Hartenstein referenced was one of the most efficient scoring outings in a 45+ point game we saw all season. Gilgeous-Alexander dropped 48 points on the road in Detroit, going 17-of-26 from the floor, 4-of-6 from 3-point range, and 10-of-10 from the free throw line. It was a performance for the ages.

Hartenstein is certainly content with his decision to join the Thunder — he won a championship and had his best season in the NBA. He also got to play with an all-time great, and he clearly appreciated SGA’s play on the court and leadership off of it.