Knicks' Mitchell Robinson Caps Snapchat Drama
On-court swats may not be the only kind of blocks in Mitchell Robinson's future.
The New York Knicks center may have to be a bit more diligent with his social media followers in the future as he provided a spark of controversy to the team's promising season with apparent complaints about his role in the rotation posted on his Snapchat account. It was certainly hard to find any dissatisfaction in his first game since the controversial posts: over 26 minutes of action, Robinson tallied eight points and nine rebounds in a 116-110 win over the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets.
It was Robinson who put the finishing touches on a victory that brought Madison Square Garden to its feet, as he scored the final points of the game via an alley-oop from Jalen Brunson that raised the volume to deafening levels.
Robinson already used the familiar means of social media to address the situation, replying to a post from Instagram content creator Knicks Fan TV to offer regret for the means of venting he took. The Knicks' primary center said he was feeling overwhelmed after a tough road trip out west, during which he discovered he'd be a father and was also forced to deal with other, undisclosed family issues.
Further queried about the post after the win over the Nuggets, Robinson briefly addressed the matter, hoping to put it behind him once and for all.
"It's in the past," Robinson said, per Fred Katz of The Athletic. "If I wasn't, then I wouldn't be playing how I just did."
Robinson had only two shot attempts in the aforementioned win in Portland last Monday night, playing 21 minutes compared to 26 for Isaiah Hartenstein. He was one of only two Knicks with a negative plus/minus as Hartenstein helped guide the Knicks to a comeback victory that allowed them to salvage a four-game Western Conference tour with a split.
Members of the Knicks addressed the pixelated controversy on Sunday. Immanuel Quickley remarked that the team took care of it, and will continue to do so, with both care and humor
“We’re all brothers, so we kind of even joked about it on the plane (home) a little bit,” Quickley said, per Ethan Sears of the New York Post. “Mitch, he’s a great guy off the floor. Obviously, I think everybody knows that. He’s like, a character. He can be funny and outgoing a little bit."
"We understand who Mitch is and we told him, any time we can help you get the ball a little bit more, we’re going to try to do that. So we don’t take it too much. We want everybody on the team to be happy and try to eat as well as winning.”
The Knicks (42-30) have certainly done plenty of that, as wins in their last three games have secure their first winning season in a full 82-contest campaign since 2012-13. They'll look to further lock down a postseason spot on Monday when the Minnesota Timberwolves visit MSG (7:30 p.m. ET, MSG).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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