Steve Popper: Mitchell Robinson's tenure with Knicks should be remembered fondly despite his new uniform
Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla hugs Mitchell Robinson during a timeout in a game against the Pistons on Tuesday in Detroit, MI. Credit: Getty Images/Gregory Shamus
GREENBURGH — The NBA, like most sports, has become immersed in analytical minutiae. Statistics are pored over and dissected until opinions are formed, and maybe even roster and contract decisions are made. It’s become like fantasy basketball.
But when you ask the Knicks about Mitchell Robinson, his loss in free agency, his contributions on the court and the challenge they will face Friday night when they meet him and his new team, the Boston Celtics, they mostly talk about what we don’t see.
Sure, there was his big offensive rebound late in Game 5 of the NBA Finals — perhaps a play that would stick in Knicks lore if it hadn’t come days after OG Anunoby’s tip-in. Robinson’s play was not quite as sexy as Anunoby’s soaring Game 4 heroics, but it was the other things — the country sensibility, the monster trucks and the constant humor that lightened the pressure for a team that was constantly under the spotlight.
“It’s definitely different,” Josh Hart said of the longest-tenured Knick on the championship team. “Obviously, that’s someone who’s had a big presence here, big presence in the locker room . . . No one else listens to country [music] but me, so that’s tough in the weight room. The lack of his presence is obviously felt a little bit. That’s why it’s a new team.”
It’s certainly an adjustment to life without Robinson, who was a casualty of the edict from ownership to remain below the second apron of the salary cap, becoming the lone rotation piece lost after the championship run. But in their second game of the new season, the Knicks will see him as an opponent, and that’s just odd in so many ways.
Robinson wasn’t a starter last season, and for much of his career, he has battled injuries as much as opponents. But when the Knicks gathered for training camp, they expressed sadness at seeing him depart.
“It’s bittersweet,” said Karl-Anthony Towns, who is embroiled in a contract standoff of his own. “Because you love Mitch. We’ve done so much historical things together here. And to not see him in a Knicks jersey anymore, obviously, for all of us, we’re a family unit. You guys are around us every day. You know how much we care about each other, each other’s families, and to not be able to have him with us on this journey after that amazing journey we went through is obviously bittersweet.
“But it’s gonna be amazing to be able to see our brother. To hug him, be able to show him some love and to obviously compete playing basketball, like we love to do.”
It’s hard to say that the Knicks felt his loss on Opening Night, even as they suffered a disappointing defeat to kick off the season. Andre Drummond, signed to replace Robinson at a much lower price and forced into action in the opener because of Towns’ early foul trouble, was the Knicks’ best player in the first half, piling up 10 points and 12 rebounds in nearly 18 minutes. Drummond finished with 14 rebounds, 12 points and four assists.
Robinson played only 18 minutes in Boston’s loss to Detroit, finishing with four points, three rebounds and a scare after turning an ankle in the first half.
But if anyone knows what Robinson can do to disrupt a game, finish lobs at the rim, dominate the offensive glass and serve as a defensive anchor, it is the Knicks — and maybe most of all Towns, who battled with him in practice the previous two seasons.
“It’s gonna be a lot of fun because we always competed at a high level in practice,” Towns said. “We made each other better. He brought the best out of me, and I feel that I was able to bring the best out of him. To win a championship together, iron sharpens iron. For us to go into practice every single day looking to how we can make each other better, how we could sharpen each other’s skills and mentality, is why we won a championship.
“Mitch was a big part of this team winning a championship and probably has the most important offensive rebound in Knicks history.”
That offensive rebound — Robinson grabbed Hart’s missed free throw with the Knicks leading the Spurs 91-88 in the final seconds — helped secure the Knicks’ 94-90 victory over the Spurs in Game 5 of the NBA Finals. It should be remembered fondly when you spot him in Celtics green and white.
Robinson was a part of the Knicks’ turnaround, one of the few pieces that was there from the 17-win season in 2018-19 to the long-awaited title.
For his part, he is focusing on the present. Speaking to reporters in Boston on Thursday, he said, “It doesn’t matter that I’m playing my former team. It’s more so just trying to bounce back from what happened two days ago. It’s basketball, it’s a business. Got to play the team just like you play any other team.”
He then was asked if he watched the ring ceremony and said, “I didn’t watch it. I mean, I was still stuck in my head . . . I’m proud of those guys. Obviously I was a part of it. Didn’t really want to watch it.”
Said Mike Brown, “You’re excited for anybody that’s able to help their situation or family in life, and Boston gave him a nice deal. And so you want nothing but the best for him because you know him, and he’s a great, great, great dude . . .
“But at the end of the day, we want to kick his [butt] like he probably wants to kick ours.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
