One of the bad things about the 2021-22 season coming to a close for the New York Knicks is that Mitchell Robinson could’ve played his final game for the team. The 24-year-old center will become an unrestricted free agent if he doesn’t sign an extension with New York.
The deadline for an extension is the final day of June. If that day comes and goes on the calendar without a deal between Robinson and the Knicks, he’ll spread his wings and fly to a new team.
He’s been linked to several teams already, but there’s one squad in particular that’s more enticing than the others. That team is the New Orleans Pelicans.
Robinson was born in Pensacola, Fla., but he finished the second half of his high school career in Louisiana, right outside of New Orleans. He became the first player from Chalmette High School to be named a McDonald’s All-American.
Earlier this week, Robinson visited his old stomping grounds and presented a signed New York jersey to his high school.
Mitchell Robinson presents his signed Knicks jersey to the principal at his high school @OwlsChalmette https://t.co/yB5x9m7EYm pic.twitter.com/1w2B29t0ap
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) April 20, 2022
As the summer draws nearer, there’s a chance that he’ll get to play basketball again in Louisiana, but this time at the Smoothie King Center.
Will the Pelicans go after Knicks center Mitchell Robinson in free agency?
The Pelicans recently did the Knicks a favor by moving on from the play-in tournament to the playoffs because it helped to up New York’s position in the lottery odds. However, fans will soon forget about that if New Orleans lands Robinson.
He’s been linked to New Orleans in trade rumors in previous years, but for the first time in his four-year career, Robinson will have the opportunity to choose his fate. Or should we say he’ll have a chance to go back home?
Jonas Valanciunas is the Pelicans’ current starting center. He was traded from Memphis to New Orleans last summer and still has two years left on the contract that he signed when he was with the Grizzlies.
He averaged 17.8 points and 11.8 rebounds in 74 regular-season games with the Pelicans. He shot 54.4% from the field.
Robinson averaged 8.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks in 72 games during the regular season. He shot 76.1% from the floor.
Valanciunas is notorious for struggling to finish at the rim, which is something that Robinson does well at. This past year, the Knicks center shot 76.6% on shots less than five feet from the goal, while Valanciunas shot 65.1% within the same range during the regular season.
Robinson’s not only more athletic than Valanciunas, but he’s also four years younger than him. The question is if New Orleans is willing to trade its current center to make room for Robinson. If only he could develop a jump shot, it’d be game over.
Valanciunas has done well for the Pelicans this year and has put up a combined 38 rebounds in the team’s first two games in the playoff series against the Suns.
There isn’t a reason to believe that he’ll be on the trading block during the offseason, but Robinson’s youth and potential shouldn’t be ignored by a team that’s projected to have another lottery pick in the 2022 draft (thanks, Anthony Davis).
A New Orleans team with Robinson, Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Herbert Jones, and CJ McCollum would be a must-watch. And who knows, maybe it’ll happen.
NY Knicks: 3 teams that could sign Mitchell Robinson in free agency
If Mitchell Robinson doesn't sign an extension with the New York Knicks and enters free agency, here are 3 teams that could sign him.