The Oklahoma City Thunder are mere months away from having to decide if they can realistically afford to accept Isaiah Hartenstein's team option. Hartenstein has been an invaluable piece of the championship puzzle, but he's owed $28.5 million in 2026-27 and the Thunder have second apron penalties to consider.
With time winding down on a decision to be made, Jaylin Williams has given the front office something new to consider after a monster performance against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets.
Williams took center stage when Oklahoma City battled Denver in a potential postseason preview on Mar. 9. He erupted to the tune of 29 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, and two blocks on 10-of-17 shooting from the field and a 7-of-11 mark from beyond the arc.
It was the third time in roughly a month that Williams, who's still just 23 years of age, has posted at least 24 points and 11 rebounds in a single game.
The suddenly semi-consistent peaks in Williams' performances have thus created a new wrinkle in the Hartenstein saga, He's playing at a high level when his number is called, has untapped potential at 23, and still has two years and just $15,549,296 remaining on his contract—including a 2027-28 team option.
If Williams' leap is legitimate and the Thunder can start trusting him for steadily strong and productive performances, Hartenstein's $28.5 million team option could become easier to process.
Jaylin Williams is adding new wrinkle to Isaiah Hartenstein's team option
Williams is currently averaging 7.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 0.7 blocks, and 1.5 three-point field goals made in just 20.5 minutes per game. Those numbers translate to 13.2 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 2.6 three-point field goals made per 36 minutes.
That alone offers reason for intrigue in regard to his ability to play bigger minutes as soon as next season, but it's what he's already doing when his playing time increases that suggests the future is now.
Williams has played at least 30 minutes in six games during the 2025-26 regular season. During that time, he's recorded averages of 20.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 4.0 three-point field goals made on .535/.480/.875 shooting.
That's an admittedly small sample size, but a recent uptick in the frequency of his success has become too profound to ignore as a factor in potential team option deliberations.
Thunder can't be too quick to write Isaiah Hartenstein off
Williams has played at least 30 minutes in four of his past seven games. During those four outings, he recorded 30 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists against the Detroit Pistons; 17 points, 16 rebounds, and six assists against the Chicago Bulls; nine points, 14 rebounds, and four assists against the Golden State Warriors; and 29 points and 12 rebounds against the Nuggets.
If nothing else, Williams is actively proving that the Thunder don't have a talent deficiency to worry about at the center position. The question is: Has he actually made Hartenstein expendable?
Hartenstein possesses two key skills Williams hasn't yet proven capable of emulating: Offensive rebounding and elite-level screen setting. Hartenstein is generating 11.0 screen assist points per 36 minutes to 5.3 from Williams, as well as 4.5 offensive rebounds per 36 to Williams' 0.9.
On one hand, that makes Hartenstein's value to the Thunder unmatched. On the other, it poses a critical question of how much his specific skill set is worth to Oklahoma City when Williams is beginning to make his mark at a fraction of the price—albeit in a different way.
The postseason will be the determining factor in what the Thunder do about Hartenstein, but Williams has certainly made the conversation more interesting in recent weeks.