NY Knicks: A Way Too Early Prediction of the Center Depth chart

NY Knicks, Taj Gibson (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images)
NY Knicks, Taj Gibson (Photo by Will Newton/Getty Images)
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NY Knicks, Mitchell Robinson, Nerlens Noel, Taj Gibson
NY Knicks, Mitchell Robinson, Nerlens Noel, Taj Gibson (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

Should Mitchell Robinson be the NY Knicks’ starting Center?

Big Mitch!

Mitchell Robinson is one of the more polarizing players on today’s roster and to no fault of his own.

The Knicks hit the jackpot when they drafted Robinson in the 2nd round of the 2018 NBA Draft.

One of the biggest steals maybe in team history.

Since then, he’s done nothing but get better over time but has been hindered by the injury bug, most notably last season where he was forced to miss a total of 41 out of a possible 72 games due to two freak injuries.

Mitch is entering the final season of his rookie-scale contract and the team seems to be at a bit of a crossroads with his extension.

Marc Berman of the NY Post had this to say:

"According to an NBA source, Knicks president Leon Rose is now open to a contract extension for the 23-year-old Robinson before the Oct. 20 season opener “as long as it’s not crazy.” However, it’s a risk for both sides to wait for the season to start. Robinson is coming off his most troubled season when he suffered two major injuries — a broken hand and a broken foot — and played in just 31 games. Robinson, who started when healthy, wasn’t too durable the prior two seasons either and isn’t blessed with a high basketball IQ. Robinson played in 66 of 82 games in his rookie year. He logged 61 of 66 games in his sophomore campaign. However, Robinson’s market value can still soar if he starts the season with the kind of panache that led him to be named to the 2019 All-Rookie second team. Rose, the former CAA agent, knows the pros and cons of waiting."

With Robert Williams inking a 4-year, $54 million deal, and Clint Capela signing a 2-year, $46 million extension, Mitch’s price tag may be too high for the front office to stomach and he may very well be packaged in a trade at some point before the trading deadline.

If they do come to a reasonable agreement, I’d be happy to have Mitch manning the middle for the next 10 years if possible.

Not often do us Knicks fans get to enjoy such a special, homegrown talent.

That said, if Mitch is 100% healthy to start the season, he’ll be the Opening Night starter at the 5.