Mitchell Robinson has been out since last week after suffering a thumb injury that required surgery against the Washington Wizards. This was early on in the game, and the Knicks have not won since he went down with the injury.
It took only a short time for the Knicks to show that they are not the same team without their starting center, as a game against the Atlanta Hawks showed that the Knicks’ defense fell off a cliff without Mitch. The Knicks lost 139-124, allowing the second-most points they have all season in their first game. The only time the Knicks allowed more points was 145 points in November against the Oklahoma City Thunder, in a game that Mitch also did not play in.
Robinson is very clearly the Knicks’ defensive anchor but also has had the biggest offensive impact of his career thus far. He is currently averaging 4.3 offensive rebounds, the second-most in the league, and has become exceptionally good at kicking the ball back out after offensive rebounds.
The Knicks currently lead the league in second-chance points per game with 17.7, which is mostly due to Robinson’s presence in the paint. In the two games that Robinson has been out so far, the Knicks are instantly down to 14.5 ORPG.
The New York Knicks made the right call with Robinson
It’s pretty clear that the Knicks made the right call when taking all of this information into account. There were critics of the contract, saying the Knicks overpaid for his services, but Mitchell Robinson has been the x-factor of this team for years now, and they are always considerably better, especially defensively, when he’s on the court.
If the Knicks had opted not to sign Robinson and save some money in luxury tax by instead rolling with Isaiah Hartenstein and Jericho Sims, the season would probably look a lot different. This is especially true when you consider coach Tom Thibodeau wants his backup centers to just be Mitchell Robinson lite.
Robinson has anchored the defense all season, and it is clear that he is the engine that makes the defense run. The Knicks have the 13th-ranked defensive rating at 113.9, and without Mitch, they are at 121.2, which is last in the league.
The Knicks do need to add more defense, regardless, however. They cannot become the worst defense in the league when their best defender is out, and they should look at all options with the February 9th trade deadline rapidly approaching. OG Anunoby’s name has popped up repeatedly, and the Knicks have shown interest.
SNY’s Ian Begley reveals what Knicks were ‘comfortable’ offering in OG Anunoby trade
After reporting that the Knicks reached out to the Raptors earlier in the season about OG Anunoby, Ian Begley revealed what the team was willing to offer.
They do not need to make a move for a top-tier defender, but re-signing Mitch was clearly a huge band-aid on a team that just flat-out is not a good defensive team outside of their center.