Brooklyn may look to Germany for 7-footer
You would have an easier time pinning the White House down on Russian links than you would Nets general manager Sean Marks on what he is planning for Thursday’s draft. But for weeks the one name most often linked with Brooklyn is Isaiah Hartenstein.
Hartenstein, 19, was linked with the Nets in at least four mock drafts — The Post, SB Nation, Bleacher Report and My NBA Draft — as of last week. He plays for Zalgris Kaunas of the Lithuanian League, and though he is a long-term project, it is clear why he appeals to the Nets.
“Teams are going to want to make him a stretch big man, and while he looks like he should be able to shoot the ball better from the perimeter, that’s not his forte right now,’’ said Fran Fraschilla. “He’s likely to still be taken in the first round because he’s got a very good combination of terrific size, some athleticism and he’s very, very young and you can mold him.”
Picking No. 22 and 27, the Nets are looking for clay they can mold. Hartenstein is an international who not only is familiar with the U.S. (born and raised in Oregon), but the Nets are familiar with him (Nets assistant Chris Fleming coached Hartenstein on the German team).
“It helps understand the culture, the language, being more familiar with the American style,’’ Hartenstein’s agent, B.J. Armstrong, told The Post. “It’s not easy for anyone, but he at least understands to some degree what he’s getting into. For a lot of the international prospects, it’s the first time they’ve ever visited the U.S.”
At 7-foot-1 ¼, 250 pounds, he is one of the biggest players in this draft. But despite a 10-point outing at April’s Nike Summit, Hartenstein’s modest numbers show he has a lot of developing to do.
“His game’s still developing,” Armstrong told The Post. “He hopes it contin- ues to develop over the years, add to it and put things in his game. He’s a great young man with an incredible work ethic, a hunger and appetite to play and work the process of becoming a pro, working on his craft at the NBA level.
“This is the best league in the world, and he wants to take what he’s done and improve on it.”
Russian team offers Teodosic
Free agent Milos Teodosic is right at the top of the Nets’ wish list, but the Serbian point guard’s current team seemingly isn’t giving him up without a fight.
As soon as their season ended, CSKA Moscow offered Teodosic a new threeyear, $13.5 million contract. Now the Russian giants reportedly have upped that offer to a five-year, 30 millioneuro deal — or roughly $33.9 million — along with an “important role as a leader” after the contract is done.