Mitchell Robinson To Return Within The Next Week

[RealGM Wiretap]

New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson is closing in on making his season debut. Robinson should return within the next week to the Knicks lineup.

Robinson has competed in several full scrimmages recently. The Knicks have one more scrimmage set up for Robinson early this week, then the center is hoping to be cleared following that.

New York has been without Robinson since Game 1 of their second-round playoff series against the Indiana Pacers. Robinson had surgery on his ankle and has been working back since then. The Knicks are hoping he can provide the team with an additional frontcourt option backing up and playing next to Karl-Anthony Towns.

Via Shams Charania/ESPN

[njknicks]

Mitch is not the answer - always injured.

Front office 2 biggest blunders this past offseason :

1) Putting all future assets ( 5 picks & expiring contracts ) into trading for Mikal Bridges ( say what you want about Gobert trade but bridges has never been DPOY or an all-star, and may never be )

2) Signing Thibs to a 3 year extension ( instead of seeing results after this offseason )

There will be changes this off-season …

[knicks94]

The defensive version of Greg Oden.

[elmdawgg69]

Mitch is not the answer - always injured.

Front office 2 biggest blunders this past offseason :

1) Putting all future assets ( 5 picks & expiring contracts ) into trading for Mikal Bridges ( say what you want about Gobert trade but bridges has never been DPOY or an all-star, and may never be )

2) Signing Thibs to a 3 year extension ( instead of seeing results after this offseason )

There will be changes this off-season …

No, NY is on pace to win 55 games this season - the most in nearly 30 years. This is the greatest Knicks team in my lifetime.

And they’re going to get Giannis in the offseason.

So no, Thibs ain’t going nowhere for at least another season.

And Knicks will win at least 60 games and be the 1 seed next season.

[Barcs]

I will welcome Mitch back with open arms. The Knicks desperately rim protection and he's the best on the team at it.

[Barcs]

Mitch is not the answer - always injured.

Front office 2 biggest blunders this past offseason :

1) Putting all future assets ( 5 picks & expiring contracts ) into trading for Mikal Bridges ( say what you want about Gobert trade but bridges has never been DPOY or an all-star, and may never be )

2) Signing Thibs to a 3 year extension ( instead of seeing results after this offseason )

There will be changes this off-season …

Disagree. Mitch Robinson is a beast on defense. The injury during playoffs was a result of a dirty play from Embiid. Knicks need rim protection. I'd even say start Mitch and put Bridges or Hart on the bench.

[Cassius]

Mitch is not the answer - always injured.

Front office 2 biggest blunders this past offseason :

1) Putting all future assets ( 5 picks & expiring contracts ) into trading for Mikal Bridges ( say what you want about Gobert trade but bridges has never been DPOY or an all-star, and may never be )

2) Signing Thibs to a 3 year extension ( instead of seeing results after this offseason )

There will be changes this off-season …

Disagree. Mitch Robinson is a beast on defense. The injury during playoffs was a result of a dirty play from Embiid. Knicks need rim protection. I'd even say start Mitch and put Bridges or Hart on the bench.

I think he's going to make a massive difference if he can stay healthy. The key is that Thibs trusts him. I would sit Hart to give the starting lineup more offensive pop and ballhandling. There should be plenty of room for big-to-big lobs from KAT. That said, the window basically closed once they blew 5 picks for Bridges. Even at a bargain salary, he was never worth 4 or even 5 first rounders.

[Barcs]

Mitch is not the answer - always injured.

Front office 2 biggest blunders this past offseason :

1) Putting all future assets ( 5 picks & expiring contracts ) into trading for Mikal Bridges ( say what you want about Gobert trade but bridges has never been DPOY or an all-star, and may never be )

2) Signing Thibs to a 3 year extension ( instead of seeing results after this offseason )

There will be changes this off-season …

Disagree. Mitch Robinson is a beast on defense. The injury during playoffs was a result of a dirty play from Embiid. Knicks need rim protection. I'd even say start Mitch and put Bridges or Hart on the bench.

I think he's going to make a massive difference if he can stay healthy. The key is that Thibs trusts him. I would sit Hart to give the starting lineup more offensive pop and ballhandling. There should be plenty of room for big-to-big lobs from KAT. That said, the window basically closed once they blew 5 picks for Bridges. Even at a bargain salary, he was never worth 4 or even 5 first rounders.

I do agree that they overpayed for Bridges.

[Luv those Knicks]

Disagree. Mitch Robinson is a beast on defense. The injury during playoffs was a result of a dirty play from Embiid. Knicks need rim protection. I'd even say start Mitch and put Bridges or Hart on the bench.

I think he's going to make a massive difference if he can stay healthy. The key is that Thibs trusts him. I would sit Hart to give the starting lineup more offensive pop and ballhandling. There should be plenty of room for big-to-big lobs from KAT. That said, the window basically closed once they blew 5 picks for Bridges. Even at a bargain salary, he was never worth 4 or even 5 first rounders.

I do agree that they overpayed for Bridges.

The picks were all late picks though and, NY had to do something with Bog's contract, so their options were limited.

Yes it was an overpay, but lets look at the picks

2025:
Bucks pick, 2025 - currently 21
Knicks pick, 2025 - currently 26

2027:
Knicks first rounder - too soon to say, but Knicks might still be good then - I'd guess in the 20s.

2028:
Pick swap option, if Brooklyn is good by then and the Knicks less good, this could be something. But still early

2029:
Knicks first rounder

2031:
Knicks first rounder

The 2029/2031 picks could matter. Memories of Isiah trading all those picks that ended up being high picks. Ouch, but that's the cost of doing business sometimes. But that's the trade-off. Get better now, lose something in 2029 and 2031. The knicks aren't the first team to make that gamble. At least they're not the Hawks. Ouch. That was a bad trade.

For all that people say about Mikal, he's the type of player who would thrive in the right set up. He's a Boston or OKC rotation type player who brings a lot to the table in the right situation. The Knicks just lack the depth and haven't figured out the right rotation and combination of minutes for their players yet.

Mitch should help with the minutes problem, but I'm not sure how much he'll help with their chemistry problems. Sure, he'll help on defense, but he'll hurt them on offense. The Knicks just have to figure things out, like the Cavs, Celtics, OKC has. The best teams have depth and good player rotations and know how to shift their lineups. NY has a good starting 5 and no bench, so they're not in the same tier yet and they can't shift their lineup much. Mitch will change that some, but I don't think he'll bring them up to the top tier teams. I think they need more. Maybe next year.

[Cassius]

Yes it was an overpay, but lets look at the picks

2025:
Bucks pick, 2025 - currently 21
Knicks pick, 2025 - currently 26

2027:
Knicks first rounder - too soon to say, but Knicks might still be good then - I'd guess in the 20s.

2028:
Pick swap option, if Brooklyn is good by then and the Knicks less good, this could be something. But still early

2029:
Knicks first rounder

2031:
Knicks first rounder

The 2029/2031 picks could matter. Memories of Isiah trading all those picks that ended up being high picks. Ouch, but that's the cost of doing business sometimes. But that's the trade-off. Get better now, lose something in 2029 and 2031. The knicks aren't the first team to make that gamble. At least they're not the Hawks. Ouch. That was a bad trade.



Mitch should help with the minutes problem, but I'm not sure how much he'll help with their chemistry problems. Sure, he'll help on defense, but he'll hurt them on offense. The Knicks just have to figure things out, like the Cavs, Celtics, OKC has. The best teams have depth and good player rotations and know how to shift their lineups. NY has a good starting 5 and no bench, so they're not in the same tier yet and they can't shift their lineup much. Mitch will change that some, but I don't think he'll bring them up to the top tier teams. I think they need more. Maybe next year.

If he had played for anyone other than Villanova, the Knicks wouldn’t have overvalued him so much. They got cute and it’s biting them now. Bruce Brown was right there the whole time. Any of those firsts plus flotsam would have been enough. Kuzma is another guy they could have grabbed if they had one or two firsts available. Valanciunas and Nurkic both went for a sandwich. Keldon Johnson would have been available for a pick. Shoot, all of these guys probably could have been had for a few seconds. They just went overpaid.

I personally think he’s doing exactly what he’s supposed to be. 17ppg as a third/4th option is no small feat, while covering for multiple bad defenders. Klay Thompson barely got above that while KD was a Warrior.

[Barcs]

Mitch should help with the minutes problem, but I'm not sure how much he'll help with their chemistry problems. Sure, he'll help on defense, but he'll hurt them on offense. The Knicks just have to figure things out, like the Cavs, Celtics, OKC has. The best teams have depth and good player rotations and know how to shift their lineups. NY has a good starting 5 and no bench, so they're not in the same tier yet and they can't shift their lineup much. Mitch will change that some, but I don't think he'll bring them up to the top tier teams. I think they need more. Maybe next year.

The Knicks have a lot of offensive firepower. I feel like Mitch not contributing a lot on offense is okay when you have people like Bridges, KAT and Brunson. What's the term, "Too many cooks in the kitchen?" I feel like the Knicks are losing to good teams because of their defense and I think starting Mitch can solve multiple problems.

1. The rim protection problem

KAT is no Mitch Robinson when it comes to defense. We knew this going in. Yes, offensively they stretch the court well, but the rim protection isn't there and it's causing more guys to have to commit in the paint, which causes extra wear and tear and often leaves people open for 3. Mitch doesn't need as much help in the lane, so Bridges & OG can focus on that perimeter defense, which is one of their strengths.

2. The depth problem

We have a top 3 starting 5 in terms of offensive production but a bottom 3 bench. Starting Mitch would push one of those guys to the bench, which would improve the depth, then you could rotate guys in and out based on who has the hot hand down the stretch.

Is Mitch going to suddenly turn this team into a title winner? Probably not, but if he plays even close to the level he did in last year's playoffs, this team should be much improved and at the very least, they'll be keeping those tough games close.