The gritty New York Knicks are going to have to get by without one of the players who best embodies that mindset for the next few months.
Center Mitchell Robinson will be out at least 8-10 weeks following ankle surgery later this week, the team announced.
Mitchell Robinson will have left ankle surgery this week at the Hospital for Special Surgery. He will be re-evaluated in 8-10 weeks.
— NY_KnicksPR (@NY_KnicksPR) December 11, 2023
Robinson injured his ankle in the first against the Celtics on Dec. 8. He came out of the game, didn’t start the second half but did enter the game and tried to play on it, but that lasted almost five minutes and he was done for the night. After the game both he and coach Tom Thibodeau said they didn’t think it was anything serious, with Robinson saying, “It’s nothing crazy.”
It clearly was more than that.
Robinson is a plus defender, a rim protector and an anchor of the Knicks’ tenth-ranked defense. He will be missed on that end and on the offensive glass — he’s averaging 5.3 offensive rebounds a game this season and is sparking the New York offense with his play on the glass. Overall he’s averaging 6.2 points and 10.3 rebounds a game, shooting 59.2%.
Not having Robinson will mean Isaiah Hartenstein will get the start and Jericho Sims will get a lot more run off the bench. Both are solid players, but not as dynamic as Robinson. The 12-9 Knicks currently sit tied for the No. 7 seed in the East and are going to have to show even more grit to hold that line for the next couple of months until Robinson returns.
