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Knicks Already Benefitting From Mitchell Robinson's Return

Mitchell Robinson has made his presence felt in the early stages of his return to the New York Knicks.
Geoff Maggliocchetti|
Mar 6, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Trey Jemison III (55) gets the rebound against New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Mar 6, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Trey Jemison III (55) gets the rebound against New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) during the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

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New York Knicks

It's hard for seven-footer Mitchell Robinson to hide in a crowd and his latest efforts for the New York Knicks have been appropriately glaring.

Knicks fans no doubt generated (oft-updated) countdowns to Robinson's return after he missed the first 58 games of the season with ankle issues held over from last year. Back on the floor in time for the Knicks' stretch run, the longest-tenured New Yorker has proven to be well worth the wait and then some.

Robinson is obviously on some form of minutes restriction as the team plays it safe upon his ramp back up to full strength, but he's making the most of his limited time: according to data from KnicksMuse on X, Robinson has posted a plus-21.95 net rating in 70 minutes to date as part of an undeniable shift in the metropolitan defensive landscape.

“The intimidation factor, seeing him at the rim is huge,” Miles McBride said of the Robinson factor, per Phillip Martinez of SNY. “You have to put two guys on him to box out. We can probably take advantage of that, corner crashes and things like that.”

To McBride's point, teams do seem to be a bit more intimidated when Robinson is on the floor: of note, the Knicks were a plus-26 on the scoreboard during Robinson's 16 minutes of relief work on Monday in Sacramento. That's the second-best tally in 20 minutes or less in Knicks single-game history since Stathead began keeping track of plus/minus in 1996-97.

While Robinson's traditional averages likely won't touch what New Yorkers are normally used to, his seventh season could be his most fateful as the Knicks (43-21) seek reach postseason heights long denied to them. If anyone on the team was deserving of it, it'd no doubt be Robinson, the lone holdover from the pre-Tom Thibodeau era that saw New Yorker sit in the Association cellar.

Robinson's next chance to leave an impact lands on Wednesday night when the Knicks face the Portland Trail Blazers (10 p.m. ET, MSG).

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Geoff Magliocchetti
GEOFF MAGGLIOCCHETTI

Geoff Magliocchetti is a veteran sportswriter who contributes to a variety of sites on the "On SI" network. In addition to the Yankees/Mets, Geoff also covers the New York Knicks, New York Liberty, and New York Giants and has previously written about the New York Jets, Buffalo Bills, Staten Island Yankees, and NASCAR.

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