3 Mitchell Robinson replacements Knicks could pursue this summer

2. Nic Claxton

When healthy, Robinson has proven himself to be a fantastic center for the Knickerbockers, serving as a tremendous rim protector and lethal lob-threat who demands little touches on the offensive side of the ball, thus allowing the likes of RJ Barrett and Randle to run the show freely and do their things.

Having such a commodity is really a blessing on a team that already possesses several ball-demanding players and, should he leave, the front office should seriously consider pursuing someone with a similar skill set to him.

Enter: impending free agent, Nic Claxton.

Selected by the Brooklyn Nets in the second round of the 2019 NBA Draft, the former Georgia Bulldog has had quite an underappreciated three-year stretch with the Knicks’ cross-town rivals.

When playing on a team with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, oftentimes simple role players are overlooked by both fans and the media, so it’s understandable if one doesn’t realize how solid of a talent Claxton is and, in fact, how similar he is to New York’s own Mitchell Robinson.

Both have shown to be stout rim protectors on defense and rim gunners on offense. Both have obscene athleticism that allows them to reach to the heavens for alley-oops, thus making them absolutely dangerous pick-and-roll participants. And, both are totally fine with operating in the shadows of others around them, thus letting them solely focus on their roles and, in turn, working on perfecting them.

Now, granted, unlike Robinson, Claxton’s promise as a player is still soundly in the potential stage, as he’s mainly been a reserve player for the majority of his time in the association, whereas the Knicks’ big man has been the main pivot for the team over the last two seasons.

That said, this past season we saw the 23-year-old post career-highs all across the board due to increased minutes (20.7), where he averaged 8.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks on an incredible 67% shooting from the floor.

During Brooklyn’s lone playoff series against Boston, he went on to up his production in a major way, finishing with averages of 10.5 points, 6.3 boards, 1.5 assists, 1.3 steals, and a whopping 2.3 blocks through four games whilst converting on an earth-shattering 79% of his attempts.

If the Knicks wish to keep things rather consistent in regard to their center rotation (while they could use for a whole bunch of change come next season, one could argue the play at the pivot is something that could remain intact), if they lose Robinson, an ideal replacement could ultimately prove to be Claxton.