How the Knicks can manage if Mitchell Robinson is done for the season
Knicks center Mitchell Robinson dunks against the Celtics during the first half of an NBA preseason game at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 9. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Mitchell Robinson has not been around the Knicks since undergoing surgery on his left ankle, at least not in person, as he rehabilitates and recovers. But on social media, he has let his feelings show and Thursday morning, he did it again.
“I just don’t get it,” Robinson posted on Snapchat. “I do everything I'm asked when it comes to my body and this [expletive] still happens … Another year another disappointment.”
Robinson has had a few weeks to process the disappointment, but the Knicks, as they have reportedly filed for a Disabled Player Exception, are now facing the reality that Robinson is almost certainly lost for the season.
For Robinson, the disappointment may be that probably his best start to a season -- accolades were beginning to filter in for his defensive and rebounding prowess -- instead lines up with others in which he has suffered a broken hand, a fractured right foot and an assortment of other injuries. Now the Knicks must move on, a season filled with promise dependent on how they can survive without their defensive anchor.
And the best solution may be to do nothing at all.
“Next man up” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “Just get in there. Julius [Randle] can play center. Josh [Hart] can play center. We got enough.”
The Knicks already were well aware that Robinson could be gone long term — and even the most optimistic projections had Robinson back just ahead of the postseason. Add in that Jericho Sims, who took over as the starter for five games, is sidelined with a sprained ankle. The result? The Knicks have posted some of their most impressive wins of the season in an arduous stretch of the schedule.
They have gotten through it because Isaiah Hartenstein has stepped in as the starter and delivered well enough in ways that mimic what Robinson gave the Knicks — rebounding and defense — while also providing things that Robinson doesn’t. He is not the presence that Robinson is around the rim, but he is a much more versatile offensive player, a skilled passer in the half court and with outlet passes.
In Robinson’s last game, Hartenstein matched a career-high with 16 rebounds and then topped that in Los Angeles when the Knicks beat the Lakers on Monday. With the production of Randle, Jalen Brunson and RJ Barrett, the Knicks don’t need a lot from the rest of team — just simply fill the assigned role. If Hartenstein remains healthy, the Knicks can get by in the second-unit rest minutes with Taj Gibson or Sims filling the gap, or even playing small with Randle at center as the Knicks briefly did Wednesday.
Could they reach out to Nerlens Noel for a cheap deal to provide insurance? Sure. But would Thibodeau trust him more than the players he has in place now? The DPE provides the Knicks with approximately $7.8 million to deal for a replacement with an expiring contract. Maybe in a Chicago Bulls fire sale they could check in on Andre Drummond, who could provide the size and strength that the Knicks' undersized backups lack, but again, does that fit with what Thibodeau and the Knicks are doing now?
The Knicks have been patient with the big picture, avoiding overpaying in their star chase. So it shouldn’t be hard to be patient now, even if it means the 38-year-old Gibson or the 6-foot-4 Hart are filling some of those minutes in the middle. The big picture doesn’t change if it means Robinson’s absence goes for five months instead of three.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
