Knicks taking load management to new level when it…
All that’s lacking is bubble wrap.
The Knicks are doing every thing attainable to keep the oft-injured Mitchell Robinson healthy, sitting him for a good portion of the preseason.
It continued in the exhibition finale Friday night time against the Hornets — a 113-108 Knicks victory — with Robinson healthy but inactive.
Load management is nothing new in the NBA, and the Knicks determine to make the most of it more under new coach Mike Brown than former coach Tom Thibodeau.
“If it was a regular game or a playoff game, to my understanding Mitch was going to play,” Brown said.
Brown said that Casey Smith, who leads the staff’s efficiency group, suggested the staff to maintain out the 7-foot-1 Robinson, an elite rim-protector and offensive rebounder.
Asked if there may be a particular plan for the common season, in phrases of minutes and video games performed for Robinson, Brown said he wasn’t told of one yet.
“Our performance group, led by Casey, and it’s above my head in terms of getting into the specifics with it,” he said, when requested the reasoning behind the transfer.
Mitchell Robinson talks to the media earlier this month. NBAE via Getty Images
Robinson was held out of Monday’s exhibition and performed just 13 minutes in the earlier contest. Robinson has only now practiced just lately, which the Knicks say is an element of their plan.
Robinson appeared in just 17 video games during the common season last yr. After Robinson made his debut on Feb. 28, the staff often restricted his minutes and didn’t have him play in back-to-backs.
Entering the ultimate season of his contract, Robinson did shine in the playoffs, serving to the Knicks attain the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years.
Mitchell Robison slams home a dunk during the Knicks’ 113-104 preseason win over the 76ers on Oct. 4, 2025. AP
He averaged 4.7 factors, 7.1 rebounds and notched a NET score of plus-2.7 in the postseason — that means the Knicks outscored the opposition by 2.7 factors per 100 possessions with Robinson on the ground.
Injuries have been a fixed for Robinson, who has averaged 48.1 common season video games in his seven-year profession.
Considering his influence when healthy, it is smart that the Knicks are doing every thing attainable to keep him on the court.
Robinson has began in the three preseason video games he has performed in, and Brown is planning to use him in tandem with Karl-Anthony Towns, presumably in his beginning lineup.
Brown likes the duo together because it permits him to transfer Towns around at different positions, making it more durable for opposing defenses to load up against him as the beginning middle.
By beginning Towns at the 4, it offers the Knicks more size.
“When you’re playing with two bigs, it’s going to be exciting to see,” the 27-year-old Robinson said just lately. “We did a little bit of it last year and we had success with it. So, we’re going to see how it goes from there.”
On paper, it looks as if it may very well be an thrilling and productive pairing.
In 165 playoff minutes last spring, they produced a plus-4.4 NET score together.
Brown has said it offers the Knicks a different dimension. But it can only work if Robinson is healthy, and the staff is doing whatever it can to guarantee that occurs.
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