Tuesday, the NBA announced several key matchups on the schedule for the 2026-27 season. To no surprise, the defending champion New York Knicks were heavily featured in these reveals.
From their opening-night face-off against LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers to their NBA Finals rematch on Christmas Day against the San Antonio Spurs, the Knicks are slated for some action-packed contests to start the upcoming campaign.
Of course, these weren't the only noteworthy contests the Knicks will be part of that were announced, as the first revenge game for recently departed center Mitchell Robinson is officially set for Friday, October 23, out in Boston.
Knicks will face Mitchell Robinson for the first time on October 23
A big-time part of the club's recent championship run, Robinson jumped ship this offseason via free agency, signing a lucrative three-year, $47.4 million deal with New York's long-time divisional rival, the Boston Celtics.
The details behind what led to the big man's departure are still somewhat being kept under wraps, as Robinson has hinted that there was some behind-the-scenes drama that played a role in his exit, though it is widely believed that the driving force was the Knicks' unwillingness to enter into the second apron.
Re-upping with Robinson's services would have made it almost impossible for them to avoid the dreaded threshold.
Robinson spent eight seasons with the Knicks, where he established himself as a beloved member of their core rotation thanks to his elite rebounding skills, ferocious rim-protecting abilities, and infectious personality.
The big man finished his Big Apple tenure with per-game averages of 7.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game, and just wrapped up his final campaign finishing eighth in the running for Sixth Man of the Year.
In his place, the Knicks decided to snatch up a similar, albeit not entirely the same, talent in veteran pivot Andre Drummond with a one-year, $3.8 million deal, and, by all accounts, are still interested in adding another big man to their rotation prior to the start of the season.
With his services no longer in tow, the hope is that New York's offseason moves will help soften the blow of his loss from the rotation as they look to become the first back-to-back champion since the 2018 Golden State Warriors.
Before then, however, they'll have to face Robinson and his new team, the Celtics, on four different occasions during the upcoming regular season, with their first meet-up coming on October 23.
Add us as a preferred source on Google