Wolves screwed the Spurs by teaching Thunder dangerous but effective playoff lesson

Lost in the San Antonio Spurs' disappointing Game 2 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder was the egregious play of Isaiah Hartenstein. In Game 1, Hartenstein played just two minutes to start the game before being subbed out in favor of Alex Caruso.

That led many to believe that Hartenstein wouldn't have a big role in this series. Unfortunately for the Spurs, that doesn't appear to be the case.

He logged 28 minutes in Game 2 and spent nearly every second fouling despite officially only finishing with four fouls. In doing so, he seemed to take a page out of Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert's playbook by relentlessly grabbing Victor Wembanyama and daring the refs to call it.

The Spurs must counter Isaiah Hartenstein's dirty tricks

Several of his dirty plays went viral, with one showing him intentionally grabbing Stephon Castle's hair. NBA legend Reggie Miller also called him out for repeatedly holding Wembanyama's arm.

That prevented Wembanyama from grabbing offensive rebounds or challenging shots at the rim. There's a big difference between being crafty and dirty, and Hartenstein clearly crossed it.

With more attention on Hartenstein, the Spurs should go right at him on drives or Wembanyama post-ups. Doing so could get him in early foul trouble and force the Thunder to adjust.

Playing Isaiah Hartenstein more could hurt the Thunder

With the referees possibly watching more closely, Hartenstein may not be nearly as effective in Game 4. Gobert tried many of the same things that eventually proved unsuccessful.

It's also worth mentioning that Wembanyama saw his minutes decrease in Game 2. Coach Mitch Johnson sought to keep him from getting tired after Wemby played 48 minutes in Game 1.

If he is back to playing 40 minutes, that's more time OKC will have to guard him and possibly more for the Spurs to attack Hartenstein.

Wembanyama was more aggressive shooting from outside in Game 2, going 3/7 from three. Not having a guard defend Wemby means Hartenstein will have to stray from the basket, limiting his effectiveness.

Having Hartenstein defend more in space by involving Wembanyama in more pick-and-roll actions could both free up Stephon Castle and hopefully De'Aaron Fox to attack him. Or, they could find Wembanyama rolling to the basket.

Luckily, while the Timberwolves gave the Thunder a template for bothering Wembanyama, they could soon suffer the same fate the Wolves did.

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