Mitchell Robinson Should Ease Worries About Knicks Drawing Hawks in First Round

New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) reacts after scoring during the first half against the Boston Celtics at Madison Square Garden. | Lucas Boland-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks completed the arduous 82-game marathon known as the NBA regular season and will now prepare for the next phase, the NBA playoffs.

The Knicks, who are the No. 3 seed in the NBA’s Eastern Conference, will square off against the No. 6 Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs, with Game 1 scheduled to tip off on Saturday night. Most Knicks fans were hoping to see the Toronto Raptors over the Hawks, who have been one of the hottest teams in the league with a 22-9 record since February 1.

However, fans shouldn’t be too concerned, as the Knicks’ core is battle-tested; they just beat this new-look Hawks team, and they have Mitchell Robinson.

While all the attention will be on Karl-Anthony Towns, Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, and OG Anunoby, it's Robinson who could end up being an x-factor, giving Onyeka Okongwu fits.

Mitchell Robinson could quietly be x-factor in first round series against Hawks

When these two teams played each other last week, Robinson was terrific off the bench in a 108-105 win at State Farm Arena. The veteran center scored eight points (4-of-6 from the field), grabbed 12 rebounds, while adding three blocks, two steals, and an assist in 20 minutes. He also had a game-best defensive rating of 84, illustrating his impact on that end of the floor for the Knicks.

In this first-round matchup against the Hawks, rebounding will be key, and that will fall on Robinson and Towns. This season, Atlanta is ranked 18th in opponent team rebounds per game, allowing 53.4. They also rank 25th in opponent team defensive rebounds per game, giving up 34.1.

Robinson has been crushing it on the defensive glass this season, averaging 4.6 per game, which is the second-highest of his career. Last year in the postseason, Robinson was solid on the glass with 7.1 rebounds per game, but averaged only 3.3 on the defensive side, which wouldn't cut it.

When one team can’t secure boards, the door is open for more possessions and more second-chance points for the opponent. And that works perfectly well for the Knicks, who are averaging 3.4 extra scoring chances per game this season, second-most behind the Detroit Pistons (3.6).

Another thing to keep an eye on in Game 1—and throughout the series in general—is whether the Knicks will use Robinson and Towns on the floor together.

They’ve done it during the regular season (277 minutes) and had some solid results on the glass. The Knicks were +4.6 in defensive rebounding and +8.5 in total rebounds. That was the best for numbers for any two-man pairing involving Mitchell during the regular season.

Needless to say, it won’t be an easy series against a Hawks team that has been playing great team basketball. However, if Robinson can control the glass and clog the middle of the lane, making shots difficult for Jalen Johnson, Dyson Daniels, and Okongwu, the Knicks will be in good shape.