The Boston Celtics beat the hapless Milwaukee Bucks in their last time out before their big showdown against the Sixers on Tuesday, and that’s worth remembering as we weigh how Mitchell Robinson, the team’s new center, looked that evening. But Robinson was aggressive and moved well on the night, and wound up with his best box score line of his brief Celtics career: 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting, with seven rebounds, a block and four steals in just 18 minutes of play.
Coach Joe Mazzulla called Robinson and center Neemias Queta the “anchors” of the team and praised Robinson’s improvement.
The coach said: “A lot of times, he’s picking things up on his own. Instead of me talking to him in games, he’s seeing things. He’s seeing the timing of screening, he’s seeing the timing of rolls, he’s seeing the timing of the angles he needs to set, he’s seeing the reads that we’re trying to run in our early offense, he’s seeing the defensive communication.”
Celtics’ Mitchell Robinson Not in Shape Yet
But after the game, Robinson made an admission that might have made Celtics fans a bit queasy if it had not come just after he’d had such a good outing: He copped to not being in shape to open the season, despite having signed a three-year, $47 million contract in the summer.
Robinson admitted he is just getting in shape: “I think that’s a big part of it, and then also paying attention to detail. I think my last few games was the best I’ve had so far. I’m just gonna build off those.”
He also added that he does not play much basketball during the summer, which means he is still getting his conditioning in order here in November: “I don’t really play too much five on five in the summer. So, if you ain’t playing ball, it is kind of hard to just get back into playing shape.”
Not the best look for a $47 million veteran. But the good news is that Robinson should continue to improve from here.
Celtics’ Mitchell Robinson Makes Surprise Admission After Best Game