You've already heard a million times by this point that Mitchell Robinson is eligible to sign an extension with the New York Knicks. You should also know that it's unlikely one will happen as he enters the final season of his current deal. On Friday, ESPN's Brian Windhorst wrote that the Knicks have "had some discussions" about an extension, but there "hasn't been traction toward a deal."
There is no question about whether Robinson's on-court play is worthy of an extension, but more so whether he can stay on the court. He's coming off a season where he played only 17 games, with his first game of the season not coming until March. The season before, Robinson played 31 games.
As ESPN's Tim Bontemps noted, under Leon Rose, the Knicks have maintained as much roster flexibility as possible. They're hard-capped at the second tax apron with the Mikal Bridges extension that happened over the summer. Still, given the timing of Bridges' deal, he's eligible to be traded before the February deadline, giving New York flexibility.
Mitchell Robinson unlikely to sign an extension with Knicks
Not only are the Knicks unlikely to extend Robinson, but the same goes for Karl-Anthony Towns. Windhorst wrote that KAT has "expressed a desire to stay in New York long term, but there's no urgency from either side to get a deal done." Towns still has three seasons left on his current contract, including a $61 million player option in the 2027-28 season. You can understand why there's no urgency (yet).
Robinson's contract situation is different. If he doesn't sign an extension, he'll become an unrestricted free agent next summer, as he did in 2022. Robinson, who is the longest-tenured Knick on the roster, could choose to play elsewhere for the first time in his career.
It's not that New York is pushing for that outcome, but the organization understandably wants to see how Robinson will look in the first few weeks of the season. That entails whether he'll be able to stay on the floor.
If so, not only will the Knicks' defense benefit tremendously, but it will give the front office an answer on whether to try to trade Robinson before the deadline or not, rather than risk losing him for nothing.
Regardless of how Robinson looks this season, extending him will still come with its risks. There will always be a worry about an injury when it comes to Mitch, hence why the Knicks are embracing load management for the 27-year-old center.
Rather than stressing over an extension, the focus should be on ensuring Robinson reaches the playoffs in good shape. The rest should take care of itself from there.