When the New York Knicks signed Andre Drummond to serve as Mitchell Robinson's replacement as the club's primary backup center, the belief was that they were bringing in someone who, though seen as a lower-level player based on age and athleticism, boasts an incredibly similar set of skills.
However, early results from their new respective tenures suggest Drummond may actually be the superior baller in one of Mitch's main trades... at least, here in the infancy stages of the 2026-27 season.
Now three weeks into the campaign, the new Knick finds himself ranking 17 in total offensive rebounds pulled down at 27. When converted to per-36 metrics among those who have played north of 100 minutes total, Drummond's productivity on the offensive glass skyrockets to a league-leading 8.1.
Robinson, who has now played 151 minutes with his new team in the Celtics, registers in down at 10 overall with 5.1 per 36 minutes.
Despite having played roughly 50 more minutes on the year in comparison, Robinson actually trails Drummond by three total offensive boards through this point.
While there are still 73 games left to be played in the year, early on, it seems the more seasoned Drummond is already making Robinson's departure less painful than many may have previously believed.
Andre Drummond closer to rebound greatness in Knicks debut season
Coming into his debut season with the Knicks, Drummond vocalized his ultimate goal of finally surpassing the Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman on the all-time rebounds list.
Already, it appears he's on pace to do exactly that.
As of this writing, Drummond has come down with 70 boards through nine games played, which ranks in as the 26 most in the association.
If last season serves as any indication, the veteran is confidently on track to accomplish his coveted goal. By this point in 2025-26, Drummond had pulled down just three more boards. Come year's end, he raked up a total of 532.
Heading into 2026-27, Drummond needed just 442 rebounds to pass the Bulls legend.
Less than a month in, the big man's career total rings in at 11,583, 371 rebounds shy of Rodman's 24-ranked 11,954.
While it's generally a risky practice to count one's chickens before they hatch, should Drummond stave off any chomps from the injury bug and remain active for the vast majority of the season, it's safe to assume he'll end up reaching his target rebounds number by year's end.
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