Getty Mitchell Robinson #23 of the New York Knicks fights for the rebound with Zach Collins #23 and Jeremy Sochan #10 of the San Antonio Spurs.
The New York Knicks should be getting back starting center Mitchell Robinson before the end of the month, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
“[The Knicks] have a very impressive victory [Monday] night,” Windhorst said on the “NBA Today” on March 19 on ESPN. “They continue to be rough and tough. Mitchell Robinson should be back before [by] the end of the month. We’re still waiting on Julius Randle but they’re only going to get better as long as they can get healthy and look where they are. They’re in fourth with a shot at the second seat.”
Windhorst’s update on Robinson is welcome news to the Knicks, who have just lost OG Anunoby again after his surgically repaired elbow flared up still no definite timeline of return.
Robinson is currently with the team in their four-game West Coast trip that ends on Thursday, March 21, at Denver against the defending champion Nuggets. After that, the Knicks will have five games more this month.
Robinson has been out since December 8 last year after suffering an ankle injury. He subsequently underwent a surgery.
Robinson was having a career season, averaging a career-high 10.3 rebounds, 6.2 points on 59.2% shooting, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks before the injury. He leads the league in offensive rebounds with 5.3 per game.
Mitchell Robinson Willing to Come off the Bench
Robinson will return to a Knicks team that has thrived without him.
Their latest win — a wire-to-wire 119-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors on March 18 — improved their record to 24-18 without Robinson. They are 12-9 with Robinson this season.
Robinson recently said he is willing to come off the bench when he returns.
“[I’d] rather come off the bench. Maybe I can show more,” Robinson responded to an Instagram post by a Knicks fan page (@knicks_movement) featuring him as starting center alongside Randle, Anunoby, Donte DiVincenzo and Jalen Brunson.
His backup and his closest friend in the team, Isaiah Hartenstein, is averaging 9.9 rebounds, 7.8 points, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.3 blocks while shooting 64.6% from the field in his absence.
Hartenstein’s passing skills and his ability to score in the floater range as a big man have become a dynamic component of the Knicks offense. He’s built a pick-and-roll chemistry with Brunson.
Warriors superstar Stephen Curry pointed that out as one of the big reasons they lost to the Knicks.
“We kept Jalen pretty quiet to start but Hartenstein got three floaters or finishes in the paint and they were kind of spacing us out,” Curry told reporters when asked to break down the 18-4 Knicks start. “They played a starting lineup that gave Hartenstein the ability to roll. He and Brunson played pick and roll then when [Miles] McBride was hitting shots, they had every option open and they were making them. We never got stops that led to the transition.”
Knicks Have Big Decision to Make
Ex-Knicks star Carmelo Anthony confirmed Joe Budden’s claim on the “7 PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony and Kid Mero” podcast on February 22 that the Knicks were mad they couldn’t trade Robinson because of his injury.
“That’s a fact,” Anthony said.
Anthony then added the Knicks have a tough decision to make in the offseason, choosing who to keep between Robinson and Hartenstein.
“You got to pay him,” Anthony said of Hartenstein. “You got to make a decision with Mitchell Robinson. “I mean like you got to pay [Hartenstein]. New York needs that energy. He’s worth it though like you can’t find a fine center like that today.”
Robinson, who will turn 26 on April 1, is in the second year of a $60 million, four-year contract. Hartenstein is expected to become one of the most sought-after centers in the free agency along with Brooklyn’s Nic Claxton and New Orleans’ Jonas Valanciunas.