Isaiah Hartenstein Out 5-6 Weeks After Injury in Thunder vs. Nuggets Preseason Game

Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein will be sidelined for five to six weeks with a "small, non-displaced" left hand fracture, ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Thursday.

The former New York Knicks star suffered the injury during Tuesday's preseason win over the Denver Nuggets, per Charania.

Oklahoma City's center depth will now be tested with both Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams also sidelined by injury. Ousmane Dieng could get more minutes in their absence.

The Thunder opens the regular season next Thursday against the Nuggets in Denver.

Jaylin Williams has been recovering from a right hamstring strain, which the team has indicated would be reevaluated after the preseason.

Depth forward Kenrich Williams is meanwhile still recovering from knee surgery he underwent in September.

The injury recovery timeline cited by Charania would sideline Hartenstein for at least 16 games, meaning the Thunder will likely have to wait until at least late November to see him pair up with big man Chet Holmgren.

Holmgren was slated to play at the 4 with Hartenstein in the starting lineup, but with the former Knicks star injured he could potentially move back to center with third-year guard Jalen Williams a candidate to start at power forward. After averaging just under 30 minutes per game in his Rookie of the Year runner-up campaign last season, Holmgren may be slated for bigger minutes as the Thunder call on him to step up in the first month of the season.

The Thunder have more available depth in the backcourt, where starters Shai Gigeous-Alexander and Luguentz Dort and reserve players Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace are on track to play in the season opener.

That depth should allow the Thunder to stay on trajectory for another postseason berth despite the loss of Hartenstein, but could mean further struggles at the glass for a team that ranked among the NBA's bottom four teams in rebounding last season.

The offseason addition of Hartenstein, who averaged 8.3 rebounds per game for the Knicks last season, was meant to address that issue, so the Thunder will hope he is able to make it back into the starting lineup as soon as possible.