<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-speaks-out-on-backlash-after-charlie-kirk-post');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson speaks out on backlash after Charlie Kirk post');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson-of-the-New-York-Knicks.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson speaks out on backlash after Charlie Kirk post</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-09-12T07:51:39-07:00">September 12th, 7:51am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-09-12T16:02:09-07:00">September 12th, 4:02pm</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>With the<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-worst-case-scenario-2025-26-spark-roster-shakeup"> New York Knicks preparing for the 2025-26 season</a>, hoping to contend for an NBA championship after a disappointing finish in the playoffs last season, one player has faced backlash for recent social media posts. As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-new-york-adding-veteran-presence-malcolm-brogdon-signing">Knicks make additions like with Malcolm Brogdon,</a> the player that has been in headlines recently has been veteran big man Mitchell Robinson for commenting on the assassination of conservative political commentator Charlie Kirk.</p><p>On the campus of Utah Valley University on Wednesday afternoon, Kirk was shot during an event where he spoke to the attendees about various political topics. He would later be pronounced dead, sparking major reactions on social media, one from Robinson, who took to Instagram and replied to a photo of Kirk’s wife and children, saying, “I feel bad for his family.”</p><p>Why that sparked some outrage is that, besides Kirk sharing his support for current President Donald Trump, his views regarding race, gender, religion, and others have been criticized by some on the Left of the political spectrum as being extreme or even hateful. Robinson would react to the reaction he would get and mention how, despite <a href="https://x.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1966267203344642181/photo/1" rel="noopener">not being “into the political field,”</a> he does not understand how others could be “offended” by another’s “opinions or beliefs.”</p><p>“I’m never the type to get into the political field,” Robinson wrote, via New York Basketball on X, formerly Twitter. “But I just don’t get how people get so sensitive and offended about someone else’s opinion or beliefs like I respect your mindset and beliefs but it’s not gone change what I believe and stand for you don’t have to like me you can unfollow, unfriend me whatever you have to do to never see what I do or say I could care less about what you do or think of me!”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Knicks center Mitchell Robinson on criticism of his Charlie Kirk sympathy: “You can unfollow…I dont care if you black, white, green, have stripes like a damn zebra, even like the same gender I respect you either way!…No kid should have to grow up without their father or mother” <a href="https://t.co/68IbVZpG1R">pic.twitter.com/68IbVZpG1R</a></p><p>— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA_NewYork/status/1966267203344642181?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson on Charlie Kirk’s death </b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson-smiling.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>With the<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/10-greatest-knicks-franchise-history-ranked"> Knicks hoping for a historic</a> season to start the 2025-26 slate, Robinson will no doubt serve as a key rotational piece to their front court. Robinson would continue about the reaction he got from the post about Kirk’s death and say that, as a parent himself, he wouldn’t want any child to live a life without a father or mother.</p><p>“I don’t care if you black, white, green, or have stripes like a damn zebra or even like the same gender, I respect you either way!” Robinson said. “As a father myself, no kid should have to grow up without their father or mother at the end of the day!…..I don’t do the things I do for attention or clout…Again, I could care less what people think of me…the ones that know me already know what I stand for!”</p><p>As Robinson looks ahead to the season, New York kicks off play on Oct. 22 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson speaks out on backlash after Charlie Kirk post

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-fans-erupt-after-mitchell-robinson-violent-tyrese-haliburton-block');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks fans erupt after Mitchell Robinson’s violent Tyrese Haliburton block');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson-defending-underneath.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks fans erupt after Mitchell Robinson’s violent Tyrese Haliburton block</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-29T19:43:58-07:00">May 29th, 7:43pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-29T19:43:58-07:00">May 29th, 7:43pm</time><address><a>Lorenzo J Reyna</a>Lorenzo J Reyna is an Associate Editor covering the NFL and NCAA Football for ClutchPoints. He's equipped with past experience for both realms through his recent stops at Pro Football Network and Heavy while also writing for 247Sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Mitchell Robinson turned to his right hand to wake up the Madison Square Garden crowd. And hand Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton a rather forgettable moment on his end. But Robinson ignited the New York Knicks fans in this crucial NBA Playoffs meeting.</p><p>With their season on the line, Tom Thibodeau threw in his big defender. Robinson tracked Haliburton inside the paint as the Pacers star attempted a circus layup. Robinson swatted it with violent intent, however.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Mitchell Robinson with the REJECTION on Tyrese Haliburton 😤<a href="https://t.co/fZnOPbpLfb">pic.twitter.com/fZnOPbpLfb</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1928262541425225942?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 30, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Robinson delivered the type of play that extended the Eastern Conference Finals. His Knicks faced elimination walking into MSG Thursday — as the Pacers held a 3-1 advantage. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/indiana-pacers/pacers-news-tyrese-haliburton-draws-stephen-curry-comparison">Haliburton even drew comparisons to Stephen Curry</a> beforehand. But the Knicks pummeled Indiana 111-94 to force a Game 6 on Saturday.</p><p>But the Robinson blocked got the Knicks fans turning up the decibel levels inside the arena. And spark multiple online reactions.</p><h2>Reactions sprout for Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson block on Tyrese Haliburton</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson-man-defense.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Fans flooded to X (formerly known as Twitter) to sound off on the Robinson block. Plus his overall play in Game 5. One fan reminded others of Robinson’s longevity.</p><p>“Just a reminder that Mitchell Robinson is the longest tenure Knick. Put some respect on that mans name!” <a href="https://x.com/BigKnickEnergy_/status/1928261882697150694" rel="noopener">the fan account posted</a>.</p><p>The account Hoops Herald posted clips of his biggest plays before he joined the Knicks. As a reminder of how dominant Robinson is.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Mitchell Robinson was ridiculous in high school </p><p>Hitting 3’s and taking people off the dribble</p><p>Never underestimate how good a pro really is </p><p> <a href="https://t.co/XZ92uI9ZTo">pic.twitter.com/XZ92uI9ZTo</a></p><p>— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheHoopHerald/status/1928201655373140449?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 29, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>That fiery block wasn’t Robinson’s lone highlight. Jalen Brunson lobbed him the basketball before that swat. Robinson delivered this throw down to spark the early first quarter energy.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Jalen Brunson throws up the alley-oop to Mitchell Robinson for the EMPHATIC jam 🔥<a href="https://t.co/DVFmFMsqZU">pic.twitter.com/DVFmFMsqZU</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1928243061382852994?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 30, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The 27-year-old center raised his game another level with the Knicks facing elimination. Or even the Pacers celebrating the Eastern Conference title on their home floor. Robinson clearly wasn’t in the mood to end his season.</p><p>Robinson finished with six points and grabbed six rebounds. He pulled off both marks through 20 minutes of action.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks fans erupt after Mitchell Robinson’s violent Tyrese Haliburton block

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-mitchell-robinson-hilariously-roasts-reporter-after-game-3-comeback-vs-pacers');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson hilariously roasts reporter after Game 3 comeback vs. Pacers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson-of-the-New-York-Knicks.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson hilariously roasts reporter after Game 3 comeback vs. Pacers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-26T10:31:56-07:00">May 26th, 10:31am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-26T11:06:04-07:00">May 26th, 11:06am</time><address><a>Benedetto Vitale</a>Benedetto Vitale is an avid sports writer who is an expert at covering the NFL, college football, NBA, and UFC. He graduated from the University of Oregon in 2016 with a film degree but has since dedicated his career to sports writing.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-brian-windhorst-knicks-jalen-brunson-karl-anthony-towns">New York Knicks scratched and clawed their way</a> to a big 106-100 comeback win over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday, bringing the Eastern Conference Finals to a 2-1 series record favoring Indiana. However, shortly after the game, center Mitchell Robinson hilariously roasted a reporter in a completely unnecessary way.</p><p>Fred Katz, a senior NBA writer for The Athletic, posted about how the Knicks center <a href="https://x.com/FredKatz/status/1926846349556728109" rel="noopener">roasted him out of nowhere</a> on social media. Katz claims that Robinson told him he has a friend who looks just like him. When responding, Mitchell Robinson allegedly told him that his friend is “ugly.”</p><p>“Reporting from Indiana: When I walked into the Knicks’ locker room postgame, Mitchell Robinson said to me, ‘You know, I have a friend who looks just like you.’ I said, ‘Oh, really?’ to which he responded, ‘Yeah, he’s really ugly.'”</p><p>Mitchell Robinson off the top rope! Who knows why he roasted Katz, but it’s hilarious either way. The Knicks center likely felt good about the win, and that mood opened up the opportunity for him to joke around with one of the reporters during the postgame interviews.</p><p>Robinson didn’t put up ridiculous numbers in the Knicks’ Game 3 comeback win. However, he played his role perfectly. After finishing the contest with six points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal, and a block, the 27-year-old center served as a solid defensive presence in the paint for New York.</p><p>Giving Mitchell Robinson 29 minutes of play seemed to be a good decision by head coach Tom Thibodeau. He played alongside Karl-Anthony Towns throughout much of the game, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-jalen-brunson-reaction-charles-barkley-tom-thibodeau">giving the Knicks</a> two tall options down low. It may have been the mismatch they needed, as the Pacers had to work extra hard to score in the paint.</p><p>Game 4 tips off on Tuesday at 8 p.m. EST in Indiana. The Knicks need another victory to bring the series to a 2-2 tie. A loss could prove to be too much for New York to overcome.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson hilariously roasts reporter after Game 3 comeback vs. Pacers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/indiana-pacers/pacers-news-tyrese-haliburton-mitchell-robinson-admission-game-1-timeout');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mic catches Tyrese Haliburton’s Mitchell Robinson admission in Game 1 timeout');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/IMG_1569.jpeg"><figcaption>Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Mic catches Tyrese Haliburton’s Mitchell Robinson admission in Game 1 timeout</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-21T19:35:30-07:00">May 21st, 7:35pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-21T19:35:30-07:00">May 21st, 7:35pm</time><address><a>David Yapkowitz</a>David Yapkowitz is an NBA Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He is a credentialed reporter based in Los Angeles who covers the NBA/WNBA, NCAA/NCAAW and boys/girls high school basketball.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Indiana Pacers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Game 1 of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/pacers-tyrese-haliburton-delivers-4-word-message-before-knicks-rematch">Eastern Conference Finals between the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks</a> got underway on Wednesday, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/editorials/top-5-moments-from-the-knicks-pacers-rivalry-in-the-90s">reigniting an age old rivalry</a> that was at it’s peak when Pacers great Reggie Miller was roaming the  court. But if this is a rivalry renewed, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton wasn’t shy <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1925367709002326114" rel="noopener">about his thoughts</a> on one of his Knicks opponents, Mitchell Robinson, during Game 1.</p><p>During a timeout in Game 1 between the Pacers and Knicks, the broadcast mic picked up Tyrese Haliburton dropping praise on Mitchell Robinson.</p><p>“I love Mitchell Robinson,” Haliburton said. “His arms, he doesn’t even have to jump. He don’t even have to jump.”</p><p>With his size and ability, Robinson certainly poses a threat to the Pacers on the defensive end. During the regular season, he averaged 1.1 blocks per game. In Game 1, as of publication, he had two points and eight rebounds as the Knicks held a commanding double digit lead.</p><p>While it appears as if the Knicks are going to strike first in the Eastern Conference Finals, Pacers will have an opportunity to draw even in Game 2. And they’re going to need their star in Haliburton to have a big game. As of publication, he had 23 points, three rebounds, seven assists and one steal. He was shooting 50 percent (9-of-18) from the field.</p><p>Through the Pacers first ten playoff games, Haliburton was playing around 34 minutes per game and taking 13.3 shot attempts. He was averaging 17.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 9.3 assists with splits of 47.4 percent shooting from the field, 33.8 percent shooting from the three-point line and 79.4 percent shooting from the free-throw line.</p><p>During the Pacers’ closeout Game 5 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Haliburton finished with a team-high 31 points, six rebounds, eight assists, one steal and one blocked shot in 36 minutes. He shot 10-of-15 from the field as the Pacers advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals.</p><p>Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Knicks and Pacers is scheduled for Friday, May 23.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mic catches Tyrese Haliburton’s Mitchell Robinson admission in Game 1 timeout

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-fans-mitchell-robinson-car-game-6-win-celtics');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks fans swarm Mitchell Robinson’s car after Game 6 win vs. Celtics');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson-smiling.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks fans swarm Mitchell Robinson’s car after Game 6 win vs. Celtics</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-17T07:57:57-07:00">May 17th, 7:57am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-17T07:57:57-07:00">May 17th, 7:57am</time><address><a>Jaren Kawada</a>Jaren Kawada is a former full-time sports bettor and is now a NFL, College Football and Betting Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. Kawada was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, but now resides in Indianapolis, Indiana, after graduating from Butler University with a B.A. in sports media. Aside from football, Kawada is an avid combat sports and basketball bettor.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>For the first time since 2000, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/knicks-news-ny-fans-take-social-media-victory-lap-after-record-setting-domination-of-celtics">New York Knicks’ Game 6 win over the Boston Celtics</a> advances them to the Eastern Conference Finals. The momentous victory gave fans a reason to celebrate in the streets, even if that meant temporarily blocking the road for fan-favorite center Mitchell Robinson.</p><p>As the 7-foot-1 center attempted to get home after the win, he was forced to <a href="https://x.com/JakeAsman/status/1923580138400158027" rel="noopener">navigate through the flooding crowd</a> of fans in the streets. Many fans caught videos of others flocking to Robinson’s massive lifted pickup truck, including New York radio host Jake Asman.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Here’s Mitchell Robinson trying to leave MSG in his monster pickup truck showing love to the fans… <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Knicks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Knicks</a> <a href="https://t.co/Ic6mu4C9NH">pic.twitter.com/Ic6mu4C9NH</a></p><p>— Jake Asman (@JakeAsman) <a href="https://twitter.com/JakeAsman/status/1923580138400158027?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Robinson took time to greet fans reaching into his windows. He was joined by three other passengers in his vehicle. After a long celebration period, the fans eventually cleared a path for Robinson to get through.</p><p>Though Robinson did not do much in Game 6, he was applauded for his defensive effort in the game. He ended the game with just one point and four rebounds in just 14 minutes off the bench, his fewest of the series. However, he claimed one of the game’s biggest highlights, as his effort <a href="https://x.com/KnicksMuse/status/1923542526025232887" rel="noopener">defending all five</a> Celtics players in one particular series got arguably the biggest crowd ovation of the contest.</p><h2><b>Mitchell Robinson, Knicks advance to ECF after Celtics series win</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Jalen-Brunson_00137b.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Robinson and the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/celtics-news-boston-fans-at-a-loss-after-39-point-game-6-defeat-to-knicks">Knicks breezed past the Celtics</a> in Game 6 with a dominant 119-81 win. The victory set up a meeting with the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals, a rematch of their 2024 semifinals series matchup.</p><p>The Pacers beat the Knicks in the 2024 playoffs in a thrilling seven-game series. However, the rematch in 2025 will feature several new wrinkles. New York has since added Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, who were both significant factors in the team’s win over the Celtics.</p><p>The Knicks also dealt with injuries to Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby in the 2024 Eastern Conference Semifinals. Both players are as healthy as can be one year later.</p><p>The Eastern Conference will have a new representative in the NBA Finals regardless of who wins. The Pacers have not made the Finals since 2000, while the Knicks last accomplished the feat in 1999. Indiana has made it to the Eastern Conference Finals five times since 2000 but has not been able to get back over the hump.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks fans swarm Mitchell Robinson’s car after Game 6 win vs. Celtics

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-free-throw-struggles-reactions');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mitchell Robinson’s continued free throw struggles draw brutal reactions');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Knicks-news-Mitchell-Robinson-s-continued-free-throw-struggles-draw-brutal-reactions.jpg"><figcaption>Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Mitchell Robinson’s continued free throw struggles draw brutal reactions</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-12T18:13:26-07:00">May 12th, 6:13pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-12T18:13:26-07:00">May 12th, 6:13pm</time><address><a>Zachary Draves</a>Zachary Draves is a sportswriter and broadcaster based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. Zachary covers a variety of different sports as well as sports history, sport and society, and sport and culture. He is also a professor of sociology.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>In basketball, the simplest things can make the difference between winning and losing. For <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-shoots-most-embarrassing-ft-attempt-of-playoffs" rel="noopener">New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson, attempting to make free throws</a> can either help or hurt. </p><p>As the Knicks hold a 2-1 second-round series lead over the Boston Celtics, their fate will come down to mastering the little things. Unfortunately for Robinson, his free-throw woes speak volumes. </p><p>Robinson <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1922088760088338620?t=PkkLtB4doUEuEctVXcychw&amp;s=19" rel="noopener">has gone</a> 7 for 23 at the free-throw line in this series. The reaction on social media has been palpable, with everyone from the famous to the unknown weighing in. </p><p>NBA legend Rick Barry, famous for his struggles at the stripe, <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/05/11/sports/rick-barry-offers-to-help-mitchell-robinson-with-underhand-fix-to-his-knicks-free-throw-woes/" rel="noopener">offered to help</a> Robinson with his free throws, per Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. </p><p>“If he would spend the offseason working on his underhand free throws having the correct technique, he becomes a valuable commodity,” Barry said. </p><p>Others <a href="https://x.com/RealBobManning/status/1922043574809505917" rel="noopener">looked at</a> Robinson during warmups on Monday before Game 4. </p><p>“Watching Mitchell Robinson go through his warmup and waiting to see some free throws. He shot a few stationary looks in front of the line that were a mixed bag,” @RealBobManning posted on X.</p><p>One <a href="https://x.com/greenmachine18_/status/1922088859019424241" rel="noopener">praised the rebounding</a> of Robinson, while also calling out the obvious.  “Mitchell Robinson is killing the Celtics on the boards man. Missing free throws and giving up extra boards has been killer” @greenmachine18_ posted on X.  </p><p>Celtics coach <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/boston-celtics/celtics-news-why-joe-mazzulla-hacked-mitchell-robinson" rel="noopener">Joe Mazzulla allowed Boston to hack at Robinson</a> in Game 3, knowing he is a liability at the line. The Knicks are trying to hold onto a resurgent Celtics team and advance to the Eastern Conference finals. </p><p>Free throws will carry them there. As for now, Robinson finds himself in a special class. </p><h2><b>Mitchell Robinson is part of a unique club of big men</b>.</h2><p>Robinson isn’t the first post player to struggle with free throws. At least three players (Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O’Neal, and Barry) come to mind. </p><p>Chamberlain was a generational talent in the 1960s and 1970s, but he was notoriously poor at the free-throw line. </p><p>Chamberlain had to resort to shooting underhanded. Ironically, he went 28 for 32 during his 100-point game in 1962. </p><p>O’Neal was dubbed “Hack-a-Shaq” because he had his woes from shooting at the line. Barry mastered the art of the underhanded shot. </p><p>Despite his struggles, he managed to shoot 89.3% from the foul line using that technique. </p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mitchell Robinson’s continued free throw struggles draw brutal reactions

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/boston-celtics/celtics-news-why-joe-mazzulla-hacked-mitchell-robinson');   ga('set', 'title', 'Joe Mazzulla reveals why Celtics kept hacking Mitchell Robinson');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Joe-Mazzulla_11cb70.jpg"><figcaption>© Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Joe Mazzulla reveals why Celtics kept hacking Mitchell Robinson</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-10T16:02:09-07:00">May 10th, 4:02pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-10T16:02:09-07:00">May 10th, 4:02pm</time><address><a href="https://haydencilley.wixsite.com/hayden-cilley-s-port">Hayden Cilley</a>Hayden Cilley joined ClutchPoints in August 2024 as a Phoenix Suns and Mercury reporter, as well as an Associate Editor. Hayden graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. He recently covered the Phoenix Mercury for The Next Hoops and PHNX Sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Boston Celtics</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>One man’s trash is another’s treasure. At least that’s the case for Mitchell Robinson and Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. In the second half, Boston made it a point to continually foul Robinson.</p><p>He clanked a good chunk of his free throws, even with the crowd cheering for him. Following the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-fans-in-shambles-22-point-loss">Celtics’ 22-point blowout</a>, the head coach explained <a href="https://x.com/sny_knicks/status/1921333835754565986" rel="noopener">his thought process</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">"Just process over results. You just always stick to the process of what you think gives you the best chance to win on that possession and to win in that game."</p><p>Joe Mazzulla talks about sticking with Hack-A-Mitch against Mitchell Robinson in the second half: <a href="https://t.co/UkOCJ1qY2p">pic.twitter.com/UkOCJ1qY2p</a></p><p>— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) <a href="https://twitter.com/sny_knicks/status/1921333835754565986?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Just process over results,” Mazzulla said via SNY Knicks on X (formerly Twitter). “You just always stick to the process of what you think gives you the best chance to win on that possession and to win in that game.”</p><p>This hasn’t been an unusual thing in the series. In Game 1, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-flattered-reaction-celtics-bold-fouling-strategy">Robinson was flattered that the Celtics kept fouling him</a>. He deemed it a sign of respect, which makes sense.</p><p>However, Game 3 proved to be the ultimate test. They weren’t fouling because of his intimidating rim presence. They were fouling because of the sub-40% he shoots from the free-throw line in the playoffs.</p><h2><b>Joe Mazzulla’s ‘Hack-a-Robinson’ seemed to work for the Celtics</b></h2><p>If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s what transpired for the Celtics on Saturday. Their offense was clicking, but what worked before continued to work again.</p><p>He made only <a href="https://www.nba.com/game/bos-vs-nyk-0042400213/box-score" rel="noopener">four of his 12 free throw attempts</a>. It’s a shocking number. Still, Boston made it a point to prevent easy baskets.</p><p>Despite his earlier comments, it’s clear that Mazzulla had a vision. He saw the numbers, the nerves, and other likely elements that went into his decision to foul Robinson regularly.</p><p>If the Knicks hope to gain more traction, they could use a more fruitful shooting performance at the line from the center. If not, Mazzulla could keep using the same system, over and over again.</p><p>At the end of the day, Game 3 was a blowout defined by many things. One of them, though, was how to limit New York, and that starts with putting Robinson on the line, as opposed to other players.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Joe Mazzulla reveals why Celtics kept hacking Mitchell Robinson

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-flattered-reaction-celtics-bold-fouling-strategy');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks center Mitchell Robinson’s ‘flattered’ reaction to Celtics’ bold fouling strategy');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Mitchell-Robinson.jpg"><figcaption>© David Butler II-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks center Mitchell Robinson’s ‘flattered’ reaction to Celtics’ bold fouling strategy</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-08T08:16:23-07:00">May 8th, 8:16am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-08T08:16:23-07:00">May 8th, 8:16am</time><address><a href="https://haydencilley.wixsite.com/hayden-cilley-s-port">Hayden Cilley</a>Hayden Cilley joined ClutchPoints in August 2024 as a Phoenix Suns and Mercury reporter, as well as an Associate Editor. Hayden graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. He recently covered the Phoenix Mercury for The Next Hoops and PHNX Sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>While <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-shoots-most-embarrassing-ft-attempt-of-playoffs">Mitchell Robinson shot the most embarrassing free throw</a> of the playoffs, the New York Knicks center took the foul as a compliment. The Boston Celtics took every chance they could to do so late.</p><p>After the comeback win, Robinson explained <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1920489327181635678" rel="noopener">why he loved</a> being fouled.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">"That makes me feel like I'm a threat. … I'm just saying, you trying to get me out the game, why y'all want me out the game?"</p><p>Mitchell Robinson on being 'flattered' by the fact that the Celtics are intentionally fouling him 😅</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/sny_knicks?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sny_knicks</a>)<br> <a href="https://t.co/68UHeZewAe">pic.twitter.com/68UHeZewAe</a> <a href="https://t.co/Y27qUZ7vVK">https://t.co/Y27qUZ7vVK</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1920489327181635678?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“That makes me feel like I’m a threat. … I’m just saying, you trying to get me out the game, why y’all want me out the game?” Robinson said.</p><p>Although the fouling seemed interesting, Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla had an interesting response. He looked at the +19 in the box score and wanted Robinson out.</p><p>While the latter might not be the most well-rounded offensive player, he knows his role. As a tough interior presence, quality rebounder and shot-blocker, Robinson knows his job.</p><p>Playing alongside guys like Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns make his role that much easier. He doesn’t have to focus on being any kind of offensive threat.</p><p>However, after shooting some bad free throws, that might be a point of emphasis for the remainder of the series. The Celtics see him as a threat, but not enough of one to do major damage.</p><p>Judging from his 26.9% free throw shooting in the playoffs, that’s further justification to send him to the line.</p><h2><b>Mitchell Robinson’s confidence highlights Knicks’ personality vs Celtics</b></h2><p>That confidence is one that the entire team embodies. Even though they have the star power, plenty of teams have underestimated them.</p><p>The fact they are up 2-0 against the reigning NBA champions wasn’t all luck. They’ve played some quality games, with Robinson being a key factor in those.</p><p>On Wednesday, he had six points, eight rebounds, and three steals in 22 minutes off the bench. As mentioned before, he had that +19 in the box score, which was the highest on the team.</p><p>Either way, that <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/mitchell-robinson-is-giving-the-knicks-their-identity-back-and-its-causing-major-problems-for-the-celtics/" rel="noopener">crazy confidence</a> is a major chip on Robinson’s and the Knicks’ shoulders. They know how good they are, but not everyone seems to think how they do.</p><p>With <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/boston-celtics/celtics-news-kristaps-porzingis-crushing-health-admission-game-2-loss">Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis not being 100%</a>, guys like Robinson have taken advantage of the lack of an interior presence. Al Horford is still solid, but having an athletic big like the Knicks do is advantageous.</p><p>At the end of the day, the New York center’s comments just show how much belief the Knicks have in themselves. Judging from these first two games, they have plenty of that belief.</p><p>Game 3 will take place on Saturday in front of a packed Madison Square Garden crowd, where the New York faithful will bring that same never-say-die attitude.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson’s ‘flattered’ reaction to Celtics’ bold fouling strategy

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-shoots-most-embarrassing-ft-attempt-of-playoffs');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson shoots most embarrassing FT attempt of the playoffs');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/New-York-Knicks-center-Mitchell-Robinson.jpg"><figcaption>David Butler II-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson shoots most embarrassing FT attempt of the playoffs</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-05-07T18:58:53-07:00">May 7th, 6:58pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-05-07T18:58:53-07:00">May 7th, 6:58pm</time><address><a>Richard Pereira</a>Richard Pereira joined ClutchPoints in January 2025 as an Associate Editor. He earned his degree from Florida Atlantic University in 2023 and has been covering the school's athletic programs since 2020, having served as a Sports Editor at the FAU University Press. He was granted the unique opportunity to report on the men's basketball team's journey to the Final Four in Houston for FAU Owls Nest during March Madness, consistently striving to grow as a sports journalist.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Boston Celtics</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Mitchell Robinson’s weakness at the free-throw line was on full display during <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/celtics-news-boston-trolled-blowing-massive-lead-knicks-game-2">Game 2 between the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics</a>.</p><p>Robinson has a knack for being one of the best defensive centers in the NBA, especially for the Knicks. His size, rebounding and shot blocking elevates the New York defense to another level. However, one area usually holds him back from getting more minutes, which is free throws.</p><p>The moment in question took place with 8:27 remaining in the fourth quarter. Boston led 84-70 as Robinson went to the line. However, his attempt was quite poor as he <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1920282384752165319" rel="noopener">didn’t even hit the rim</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Mitchell Robinson missed this free throw… badly 😬<a href="https://t.co/K4FgI95wUh">pic.twitter.com/K4FgI95wUh</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1920282384752165319?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><h2><b>How Mitchell Robinson, Knicks played against Celtics</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/New-York-Knicks-center-Mitchell-Robinson-23-works-for-the-ball-against-Boston-Celtics-center-Al-Horford-42.jpg"><figcaption>David Butler II-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Despite his mishap at the charity stripe, Mitchell Robinson and the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/celtics-news-jayson-tatum-another-brutal-collapse-game-2-knicks">Knicks had the last laugh over the Celtics</a> with a 91-90 victory in Game 2.</p><p>Just like Game 1, they came back from a 20-point deficit to complete the rally and stun the Celtics once again. They trailed 70-50 with four minutes remaining in in the third quarter. They went on to outscore Boston 41-20 for the rest of the contest.</p><p>The Knicks took advantage of another poor shooting night from the Celtics. The visitors shot 43% from the field, including 29% from beyond the arc. On the other hand, Boston went 36.2% overall, including 25% from three.</p><p>Four players scored in double-digits on New York’s behalf. Josh Hart led the way with a stat line of 23 points, six rebounds and three assists. He shot 9-of-15 from the field, including 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Karl-Anthony Towns came next with 21 points and 17 rebounds, Jalen Brunson had 17 points and seven assists, while Mikal Bridges provided 14 points and seven rebounds.</p><p>The Knicks will look to take a 3-0 series lead when they host the Celtics in Game 3. The contest will take place on May 10 at 3:30 p.m. ET.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson shoots most embarrassing FT attempt of the playoffs

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-tom-thibodeau-rest');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mitchell Robinson’s recent usage proves Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau can embrace rest');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Mitchell-Robinson-fouled-by-Cleveland-Cavaliers-forward-Evan-Mobley-on-a-shot-attempt.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Mitchell Robinson’s recent usage proves Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau can embrace rest</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-04-12T12:40:23-07:00">April 12th, 12:40pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-04-12T12:40:23-07:00">April 12th, 12:40pm</time><address><a>Drew Maresca</a>Drew Maresca is a NY-area writer and researcher who has covered the NBA for more than 5 years. Prior to joining ClutchPoints to cover the New York Knicks, Drew wrote for Basketball News and Basketball Insiders. Drew has conducted interviews inside NBA locker rooms including Madison Square Garden, the Barclays Center, and the Kia Center, and he covered the 2019 NBA Draft in-person from Brooklyn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks looked unprepared for the playoffs in a recent home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. They blew a big first-half lead, allowing the Cavaliers to steal a comeback win without Donovan Mitchell. Despite <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-kendrick-perkins-warns-tom-thibodeau-tenure-hinges-playoff-run">noise about coach Tom Thibodeau’s tenure being in jeopardy</a>, he might have demonstrated some important self awareness in the recent loss. And if so, it was Mitchell Robinson successfully playing more than 30 minutes that tipped us off.</p><p>Before we get too far into what took place with Robinson, it’s important to remember that <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mikal-bridges-pleads-tom-thibodeau-fewer-minutes">Thibodeau was recently criticized by one of his own players for playing his key players heavy minutes</a>.</p><p>Just prior to Friday’s game, the Knicks announced that Karl-Anthony Towns would not play (knee). That left Robinson as the lone center on the Knicks’ roster. And in being the only center, it was expected — although not certain — that Robinson would take on a bigger workload.</p><p>Well, Robinson put up eight points, seven rebounds, and one block in a season high 32:48. Performance aside, what can you glean from a guy who’s recently returned from injury playing those type of minutes? At the very least, you can surmise that he’s relatively healthy. Or at least that his coaching staff believes he is.</p><h2><b>Robinson’s season-high in minutes could be telling</b></h2><p>So, if Robinson can play nearly 33 minutes in the second-to-last game of the season, why was he averaging only 16.1 minutes per game in the 16 games prior to Friday?</p><p>Sure, Robinson’s minutes had to be watched over initially upon his return—especially given his propensity for aggravating old injuries.</p><p>However, maybe—just maybe—Thibodeau was being strategic with Robinson’s minutes.</p><p>Maybe Robinson could have played heavier minutes over the past two weeks. But maybe Thibodeau realized that the risk-reward of unleashing Robinson when the two seed was out of reach was simply not worth it.</p><p>If Thibodeau was exercising caution with Robinson’s minutes, does that call into question all of the criticism he’s received regarding overplaying his better players? It might, at least partially.</p><h2><b>Maybe key Knicks issue isn’t Tom Thibodeau’s fault</b></h2><p>In the moment, it’s easy to look for a scapegoat. And the coach is an obvious one (see Mike Malone in Denver). But when the dust settles, we might look back on how Thibodeau handled minutes with this team and blame the lack of roster depth.</p><p>Realistically, how could the Knicks be expected to win if they played their bench heavier minutes? No disrespect to the bench, but without Robinson, the only player capable of playing 20 or more minutes per game on a winning team is Miles McBride.</p><p>Further, maybe Thibodeau knows exactly what Robinson is capable of—which is a fair assumption considering Robinson is the longest tenured member of the team. And maybe Thibodeau preferred to hide Robinson so opponents would be less prepared to face him in the playoffs.</p><p>Granted, there are a lot of maybes in this theory. It could also be that Thibodeau wanted to get Towns some extra rest. Thus, Robinson was the only option at center. But the idea that a former Coach of the Year might know more about roster management than fans and naysayers isn’t far fetched.</p><p>The last game of the season is this Sunday against the Brooklyn Nets. How much Robinson and other major contributors play will be telling. Either way, the Knicks are locked into the third-seed and destined for a first-round matchup with the Detroit Pistons. And regardless of why Robinson has played limited minutes since returning from injury, maybe it will benefit the team.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mitchell Robinson’s recent usage proves Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau can embrace rest

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-ongoing-struggles-overshadow-mitchell-robinson-return');   ga('set', 'title', 'Knicks’ ongoing struggles overshadow Mitchell Robinson’s return');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Knicks-ongoing-struggles-overshadow-Mitchell-Robinsons-return.jpg"></figure><h1>Knicks’ ongoing struggles overshadow Mitchell Robinson’s return</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-17T15:32:39-07:00">March 17th, 3:32pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-17T15:33:13-07:00">March 17th, 3:33pm</time><address><a>Drew Maresca</a>Drew Maresca is a NY-area writer and researcher who has covered the NBA for more than 5 years. Prior to joining ClutchPoints to cover the New York Knicks, Drew wrote for Basketball News and Basketball Insiders. Drew has conducted interviews inside NBA locker rooms including Madison Square Garden, the Barclays Center, and the Kia Center, and he covered the 2019 NBA Draft in-person from Brooklyn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks are in a bit of a slump. They’ve lost four of their last six games. And, more importantly, they <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-jalen-brunson-injury-update">lost Jalen Brunson to an ankle injury</a>, which could cost him the rest of March, if not longer.</p><p>However, a deeper look reveals that the Knicks’ depth should have been their primary concern all along. And despite <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-return-new-york">returning Mitchell Robinson</a> and becoming whole for a split second, the team’s depth concerns were never really alleviated.</p><h2><b>Knicks depth struggles morph—but remain</b></h2><p>New York entered the season with a limited bench. This was partially due to trades that resulted in adding Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, while sending out Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, and Bojan Bogdanovic (as well as a plethora of picks). While Bogdanovic hasn’t played this season due to injuries sustained in last year’s playoffs, that doesn’t change the fact that New York consolidated its talent.</p><p>Additionally, Precious Achiuwa began the season rehabbing an injury, Isaiah Hartenstein was lost to a more lucrative offer, and Robinson just returned from an ankle injury, as well.</p><p>The result wasn’t pretty. The Knicks were left with limited rotation-worthy players beyond their starters.</p><p>But as expected, the Knicks recovered. Achiuwa returned, as did Robinson. Specifically, New York’s defensive rating jumped tremendously following Robinson’s return. However, the Knicks’ depth leaves more to be desired.</p><p>Some of this can be explained by the void that Brunson’s absence creates. Brunson is easily the team’s best player. And the Knicks are simply not the same without their primary weapon. Miles McBride has played valiantly in his Brunson’s place, but McBride and Brunson are on two entirely different levels.</p><p>Ultimately, though, the struggle that the Knicks must overcome can’t be solved by Brunson’s return. It is a lack of truly impactful role players, and coach Tom Thibodeau is partially to blame.</p><h2><b>Developing existing rookies could help solve Knicks’ depth woes</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Pacome-Dadiet-fights-for-a-loose-ball-against-the-Brooklyn-Nets-Jalen-Wilson-in-a-November-match-up.jpg"><figcaption>Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Let’s be clear, New York’s depth problem <i>could</i> be solved by better reserves. But it could also be improved upon by a deeper bench predicated on reliable youth. Problem is, that requires Thibodeau to trust his younger players and give them more opportunities.</p><p>Frankly, New York has done a poor job of developing its youngsters. 2024 first-round draft pick, Pacome Dadiet showed some flashes in his limited (95) minutes this season. Ironically, the Knicks could use a more polished wing, and Dadiet could have been on his way to becoming that if given more of an opportunity.</p><p>Tyler Kolek is another rookie who should have received more than the 152 minutes he’s played thus far. He clearly has promise but hasn’t yet received an actual opportunity. And with Cam Payne entering unrestricted free agency after this season, the Knicks would have been wise to understand if Kolek can step into that role.</p><p>Ariel Huckporti was <i>just</i> beginning to develop a role of his own, albeit one out of necessity. He’s played well. However, ignoring his final three appearances before the knee injury—all of which came immediately before Robinson’s return—Hukporti appeared in 10 or more minutes on only five occasions.</p><p>One or all of those young guys could have been part of the solution this year or next. Further, if given more time, New York could have known more about what they had in each, facilitating informed decisions this offseason. Instead, the Knicks front office will have limited game tape on which they can base their 2025-26 roster decisions.</p><p>And that ignores TJ Warren, who remains on the Westchester Knicks. Despite boasting a strong NBA background <i>and</i> averaging 25.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game this season in the G-League, there has been no talk of a promotion.</p><h2><b>Knicks need more from reserves if they hope to compete for title</b></h2><p>Sadly, the Knicks are going to have to do more with less if they hope to make a run this season. Last season’s conference champions got 35.8 and 29.3 points per game, respectively, from their benches. New York’s 2023-24 bench ranked 27th, but still managed 28.4 points per game. This season’s version is worse.</p><p>The Knicks are dead last in bench scoring, squeezing only 21.2 points per game out of its bench. And much of that has to do with a lack of opportunity. The Knicks are also last in bench minutes per game, averaging only 12.3 minutes per game, according to <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/traditional?Season=2024-25&amp;SeasonType=Regular%20Season&amp;StarterBench=Bench&amp;dir=A&amp;sort=MIN">NBA.com</a>.</p><p>The Knicks and coach Thibodeau are in need of an intervention-style change. They have to allocate more minutes to the bench, and they need their reserves to come through for them.</p><p>Neither of those needs are a foregone conclusion, and that’s a problem. However, if Thibodeau and the Knicks hope to take the next step (now or in the future), they’ll have to strike a better balance between starters and reserves. And there’s no better time to get started than the present.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Knicks’ ongoing struggles overshadow Mitchell Robinson’s return

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/are-og-anunoby-mitchell-robinson-playing-tonight-knicks-lakers-injury-report');   ga('set', 'title', 'Are OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson playing tonight? Knicks vs. Lakers injury report');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Are-OG-Anunoby-Mitchell-Robinson-playing-tonight-Knicks-vs.-Lakers-injury-report.jpg"></figure><h1>Are OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson playing tonight? Knicks vs. Lakers injury report</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-06T06:52:27-08:00">March 6th, 6:52am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-06T15:54:08-08:00">March 6th, 3:54pm</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Lakers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/betting/knicks-lakers-prediction-odds-pick-spread-3-6-2025">New York Knicks will visit the Los Angeles Lakers</a> on Thursday at Crypto.com Arena. OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson <a href="https://ak-static.cms.nba.com/referee/injury/Injury-Report_2025-03-06_08AM.pdf" rel="noopener">are questionable on the team’s injury report</a>. Anunoby is dealing with a left thumb sprain, while Robinson is listed as left ankle injury recovery.</p><p>Here’s everything we know about Anunoby and Robinson’s injuries and playing statuses vs. the Lakers.</p><p><i><b>*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV <a href="https://www.fubo.tv/lp/nba/?irad=356361&amp;irmp=492408" rel="noopener sponsored">(Get Access | Save $30)</a>*</b></i></p><h2>OG Anunoby injury status vs. Lakers</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/OG-Anunoby.jpg"><figcaption>Petre Thomas-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Anunoby has battled several injuries this season. However, he’s appeared in the Knicks’ last six games since returning from a foot sprain, averaging 17.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists on 44/37/82 shooting percentage splits.</p><p>He popped up on the Knicks’ status report with a thumb sprain following Tuesday’s 114-102 loss to the Golden State Warriors. A questionable tag indicates he’s experiencing discomfort but will have a chance to suit up in Los Angeles.</p><p>Robinson made his first appearances of the season in New York’s last three games after multiple ankle surgeries. The center has averaged 5.0 points and 4.0 rebounds on 63.6 percent shooting in 13.7 minutes per game. A questionable tag indicates the Knicks are managing his load after he missed most of the regular season, although he’ll have a chance to play vs. the Lakers.</p><p>Karl-Anthony Towns will be available for the Knicks on Thursday after <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-karl-anthony-towns-absence-cryptic-tom-thibodeau-update">missing Tuesday’s game for personal reasons</a>.</p><p>New York has looked far from a championship team while posting a 4-3 record post-All-Star break. Tom Thibodeau’s squad sits third in the Eastern Conference at 40-21, 3.5 games behind the Boston Celtics for second.</p><p>Meanwhile, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-luka-doncic-trade-nba-pissed-confused-month-later">Lakers have posted an 8-2 record since trading for Luka Doncic</a>. They rank 11th in offense, third in defense, and sixth in net rating (8.1) during that span. The hot streak has tied Los Angeles with the Denver Nuggets for second place in the Western Conference.</p><h2><b>Knicks injury report</b></h2><p>Precious Achiuwa: Questionable – Left Hamstring; Tightness</p><p>OG Anunoby: Questionable – Left Thumb Sprain</p><p>Pacome Dadiet: Questionable – G League – On Assignment</p><p>Ariel Hukporti: Out – Left Knee; Meniscus Surgery</p><p>Tyler Kolek: Questionable – G League – On Assignment</p><p>Kevin McCullar Jr.: Out – G League – Two-Way</p><p>Mitchell Robinson: Questionable – Left Ankle; Surgery Injury Recovery</p><h2><b>Lakers injury report</b></h2><p>Luka Donic: Probable – Right Knee; Contusion</p><p>Jordan Goodwin: Out – Right Ankle; Sprain</p><p>Rui Hachimura: Out – Left Patellar; Tendinopathy</p><p>LeBron James: Probable – Left Foot; Injury Management</p><p>Maxi Kleber: Out – Right Foot; Surgery Recovery</p><p>Markieff Morris: Out – Illness</p><p>Austin Reaves: Probable – Right Calf; Strain</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Are OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson playing tonight? Knicks vs. Lakers injury report

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-return-new-york');   ga('set', 'title', '3 ways Mitchell Robinson’s return impacts Knicks');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/3-ways-Mitchell-Robinsons-return-impacts-Knicks.jpg"></figure><h1>3 ways Mitchell Robinson’s return impacts Knicks</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-01T13:24:17-08:00">March 1st, 1:24pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-01T13:24:17-08:00">March 1st, 1:24pm</time><address><a>Drew Maresca</a>Drew Maresca is a NY-area writer and researcher who has covered the NBA for more than 5 years. Prior to joining ClutchPoints to cover the New York Knicks, Drew wrote for Basketball News and Basketball Insiders. Drew has conducted interviews inside NBA locker rooms including Madison Square Garden, the Barclays Center, and the Kia Center, and he covered the 2019 NBA Draft in-person from Brooklyn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks are now as complete a team as they can be. New York’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-welcome-ny-return">Mitchell Robinson returned from an injury against the Memphis Grizzlies</a>, helping to secure the victory. And while the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-new-yorks-latest-blowout-loss-celtics-separation-nbas-elite">major narrative around the Knicks is that they can’t beat the elite teams in the NBA,</a> they are now 4-0 against the 2nd (Denver Nuggets) and 3rd (Grizzlies) seeds in the Western Conference. And with Robinson back, their ceiling becomes considerably higher.</p><h2><b>Mitchell Robinson’s first game back with Knicks was a marginal success</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Mitchell-Robinson.jpg"><figcaption>Petre Thomas-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Robinson looked good in his first game back, despite limited time. He tallied six points, five rebounds, and only one personal foul in 12 minutes and 20 seconds of action. He was in the game down the stretch, which makes sense considering Robinson’s defensive prowess and the back and forth nature of the game. And he was a team-high +11, which speaks to his broader impact. But most importantly, he appeared to move well with and without the ball.</p><p>So, exactly how will Robinson help the Knicks? His length, shot-blocking, and rebounding will almost certainly move the needle. Let’s explore three specific ways that Robinson’s return will help the Knicks achieve success this season.</p><h2><b>Robinson takes pressure off of Karl-Anthony Towns</b></h2><p>Karl-Anthony Towns is obviously a major part of the Knicks success. He’s held up well thus far, but who knows how long that lasts. Towns is averaging 35 minutes per game this season, which is more than he’s averaged since 2017-18. However, Towns played only 31 minutes in their recent win over the Grizzlies, despite the Knicks being down for much of it.</p><p>Granted, Robinson’s skill set is dramatically different than that of Towns. In fact, they’re pretty much polar  opposites, with Towns boasting offensive versatility and Robinson representing a defensive anchor. But Robinson’s size alleviates some of the strain on Towns, as Towns was previously the only seven-footer with any noteworthy NBA experience. So, at the very least, Robinson’s presence should translate to a fresher Towns.</p><h2><b>Robinson should give the Knicks a major rebounding boost</b></h2><p>Robinson had been an incredible rebounder throughout his career, and arguably the best offensive rebounder in the league. Conversely, New York is below average. They are 24th in total rebounding, and 22nd in offensive rebounds. Robinson should give New York a major rebound infusion.</p><p>Granted, New York got smoked on the glass against the Grizzlies (58-35), but Robinson played a limited role. Throughout his career, Robinson is a significantly above-average rebounder. He led the NBA in offensive rebounds last season, and he’s averaged at least eight rebounds per game for the past four seasons.</p><p>The Knicks can take advantage of additional rebounds, benefiting from additional possessions and getting out on fast breaks more freely.</p><h2><b>Rim protectors like Robinson deter attempts at the rim</b></h2><p>Robinson undoubtedly adds a major defensive presence. Sure, his blocks per game have tapered off since his rookie season, some of which is due to the fact that he’s carried more weight— mostly an intentional move to help him bang with bigger centers on the block. But a lot of it stems from his reputation.</p><p>Robinson is a known shot-blocker. Even players like Ja Morant, who are known for putting shot-blockers on posters, think twice about challenging Robinson. And that isn’t conjecture or interpretation. It happened in Robinson’s first game back.</p><p>At one point, Morant had a relatively clear path to the basket, with only Robinson between him and the rim. Morant hesitated for a split second, allowing the rest of the defense to catch up. That’s not to say that Morant was scared. And it doesn’t mean that Robinson never gets dunked on. It just means that his reputation for blocking shots precedes him. And that should lead to fewer easy buckets, as less vertically inclined players shoot pull-up jumpers or floaters instead of attacking the rim.</p><p>Ultimately, Robinson’s many benefits are meaningless if he can’t remain healthy. So, coach Tom Thibodeau would be well-served to work him back into the rotation slowly. But he did a great job handling Robinson’s minutes against the Grizzlies.</p><p>If Robinson can continue to contribute while on a minutes restriction, that’s a huge win for the Knicks. But the long game is the playoffs. Can Robinson continue to work himself into basketball shape as New York approaches the playoffs? If so, and he’s back to full form come mid-April, then some of the Knicks’ depth issues evaporate. And maybe, just maybe, they can compete with the likes of the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Oklahoma City Thunder.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

3 ways Mitchell Robinson’s return impacts Knicks

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-welcome-ny-return');   ga('set', 'title', 'Mitchell Robinson receives hero’s welcome in Knicks return');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Knicks-news-Mitchell-Robinson-receives-hero-s-welcome-in-NY-return.jpg"></figure><h1>Mitchell Robinson receives hero’s welcome in Knicks return</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-02-28T19:23:37-08:00">February 28th, 7:23pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-02-28T19:23:37-08:00">February 28th, 7:23pm</time><address><a>Troy Finnegan</a>Troy Finnegan is a Senior Editor and College Sports Lead at ClutchPoints. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2023 with a degree in journalism and minors in communications and sports media, as well as a critical sports studies certificate. He has had a passion for sports his entire life, and enjoys covering and writing about all sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks have been a bit of an oddity this season. The Knicks have a very good record at 38-20 and are comfortably in third place in the Eastern Conference, but they have a terrible record against the top teams in the NBA.</p><p>The Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics and Oklahoma City Thunder <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/knicks-news-jalen-brunson-blunt-nsfw-take-record-top-teams">have blown the Knicks out</a> in just about every meeting this year, leaving fans skeptical of New York’s chances to actually compete for a championship. Knicks fans are hoping that the addition of center Mitchell Robinson will help make up that gap as he returns from ankle surgery to make his season debut.</p><p>Robinson <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1895647213927399735" rel="noopener">took the floor</a> for the Knicks on Friday night for the first time this season as New York takes on the Memphis Grizzlies.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Mitchell Robinson checks in for the Knicks for the first time this season 🙌</p><p> <a href="https://t.co/1QaSzgylli">pic.twitter.com/1QaSzgylli</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1895647213927399735?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/knicks-mitchell-robinson-set-to-make-injury-return">Robinson will have a chance to make his debut</a> in front of the Knicks faithful at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night when the Golden State Warriors come to town for a blockbuster matchup. The Knicks also play in Miami against the Heat on Sunday.</p><p>Robinson’s shot blocking will be a big asset for the Knicks, who are currently lacking a rim protector in the middle to tie things together with their deep stable of wing stoppers. However, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/mitchell-robinson-replace-knicks-ideal-starting-lineup">Tom Thibodeau has some tough decisions to make</a> with his rotation regarding who is in the starting lineup.</p><p>Karl-Anthony Towns has been starting at center while Robinson has been out, so Thibodeau could either opt to start Robinson in place of Josh Hart and bump Towns down to the four or he could bring Robinson off the bench.</p><p>Robinson will obviously come in as a reserve until he is back in game shape and isn’t playing limited minutes, but Towns’ comfort with the move could be a big factor in the decision.</p><p>Towns has a lot of experience playing the four after spending multiple seasons starting alongside Rudy Gobert in Minnesota, but he has thrived with the extra spacing that he is granted as a five on the offensive end of the floor. Thibodeau is known as a defensive-minded coach, but would he sacrifice some production on offense for the rim protection that Robinson provides?</p><p>Regardless of his role on this Knicks team, there’s no doubt that Robinson can be a helpful piece of the rotation if he is healthy. The Knicks will be thrilled to have him back in the lineup after a long absence.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Mitchell Robinson receives hero’s welcome in Knicks return

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/new-york-knicks/mitchell-robinson-replace-knicks-ideal-starting-lineup');   ga('set', 'title', 'Who Mitchell Robinson must replace in Knicks’ ideal starting lineup');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Who-Mitchell-Robinson-must-replace-in-Knicks-ideal-starting-lineup.jpg"></figure><h1>Who Mitchell Robinson must replace in Knicks’ ideal starting lineup</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-02-28T06:48:25-08:00">February 28th, 6:48am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-02-28T06:48:25-08:00">February 28th, 6:48am</time><address><a>Drew Maresca</a>Drew Maresca is a NY-area writer and researcher who has covered the NBA for more than 5 years. Prior to joining ClutchPoints to cover the New York Knicks, Drew wrote for Basketball News and Basketball Insiders. Drew has conducted interviews inside NBA locker rooms including Madison Square Garden, the Barclays Center, and the Kia Center, and he covered the 2019 NBA Draft in-person from Brooklyn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The New York Knicks’ center <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-mitchell-robinson-injury-return-imminent">Mitchell Robinson is almost back from injury</a>. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-mitchell-robinson-set-to-make-injury-return">Robinson could return as soon as this weekend.</a> And he will add significant size, length, and rebounding to a team in need of help with all three aspects of the game.</p><p>And while the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/how-knicks-improve-now-summer-legitimate-title-contenders">Knicks probably need more than just Robinson to compete for a championship</a>, it sounds as if coach Tom Thibodeau plans to re-insert the seven-footer into the startling lineup sooner than later. But who will he replace? Let’s review Thibodeau’s options and gauge which Knick might move to the bench.</p><p>First of all, Robinson’s return will obviously not impact star point guard Jalen Brunson’s role. And while it could shift Karl-Anthony Towns to power forward, there is virtually no chance that Towns moves out of the starting lineup. That leaves three options: OG Anunoby, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges.</p><h2><b>OG Anunoby is least likely to join the reserves</b></h2><p>Anunoby could technically join the reserves, but it’s unlikely. The six-foot-seven-inch defensive specialist is a true wing capable of guarding all five positions. He balances the starters nicely, taking on a multitude of defensive assignments. And he is almost constantly in motion on offense, serving as a cutter for a team that needs more players to move without the ball. He’s shooting a respectable 36% on three-pointers. And he’s quietly averaging 16.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game.</p><p>Another important thing to remember when discussing Anunoby joining the reserves is how well New York plays with him as a starter. Anunoby has exclusively played with the starters since joining the Knicks. And New York’s fortunes immediately took a positive turn after he joined via trade in January 2024. They went 19-4 to close last season with Anunoby (when he was healthy), and they are currently 53-22 in total when he plays. So, Anunoby is probably the wrong guy to consider.</p><h2><b>Josh Hart is a logical choice</b></h2><p>To non-Knicks fans, Hart is the logical choice to move to the bench if Robinson is to join the starters. He is least recognizable from a star-standpoint, and he is the least aligned with a traditional position. Is he a power forward, small forward, or shooting guard? And Hart’s motor makes it easy to believe that he will give 100% no matter what.</p><p>But Knicks fans understand how well he’s performed as a starter. And a closer look at Hart’s output demonstrates how much playing with the starters helped the eight-year pro take another step in his development. In 2023-24, Hart averaged an impressive 11.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per game in 42 games as a starter. Comparatively, he averaged only 6.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.6 assists as a reserve.</p><p>Granted, Hart received about 12 minutes more per game as a starter. But Thibodeau probably doesn’t want to tinker with Hart’s impact, especially since he sets the tone for the team’s energy and effort.</p><h2><b>Mikal Bridges works in the second unit</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/New-York-Knicks-guard-Josh-Hart-defends-Philadelphia-76ers-guard-Kelly-Oubre-Jr.-during-the-fourth-quarter.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Bridges might be the odd man out as far as the starting lineup is concerned—and it might not be a bad thing for him. Bridges has struggled to find a role with the Knicks this season. Sure, he’s had some big games. But on the whole, he’s looked lost more frequently than any other starter.</p><p>Bridges’ lack of a role is most evident when looking at free throw attempts.  Simply put, he doesn’t get to the foul line anymore. After averaging 4.4 attempts per game in 2022-23 and 4.5 last season, he’s <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/bridgmi01.html" rel="noopener">averaging a career-low</a> 1.1 free throw attempts per game this season.</p><p>Bridges free throw attempts aren’t a <i>huge</i> deal, and it’s not entirely Bridges’ fault. Transitioning to the third or fourth option is tough—and it’s uncharted territory for the six-foot-six-inch guard.</p><p>Recently, he was the obvious first option for the Brooklyn Nets for the last season-and-a-half. And it’s understandably challenging to not only learn a new offensive system, but also have to find shots without them being manufactured for you. Maybe moving to the bench can give Bridges more freedom to come into the game and serve as a bigger offensive focal point.</p><p>Regardless if the move benefits whomever joins the reserves, a new starting lineup will probably be given a look some time soon. But nothing is forever. And the lineup can easily revert back to its current form with Robinson joining the reserves.</p><p>But if the change benefits the team, who in their right mind would argue against it? And <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-york-knicks/knicks-news-new-yorks-latest-blowout-loss-celtics-separation-nbas-elite">given how the Knicks have played against the teams standing between them and a championship</a>, it’s worth exploring.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
5.1	5.9	0.8	1.1	0.9

2024-25 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
5.1	5.9	0.8	1.1	0.9

Mitchell Robinson news

Mitchell
Robinson news