EXCLUSIVE: Glenn Robinson III Talks Comeback; Should Mavs Sign?
LAS VEGAS — An important part of building an NBA roster can involve taking a chance on a low-risk flier who fills a complementary role. The Dallas Mavericks recently did so with Dante Exum, who has played has played his previous two seasons in Europe since a short stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2021.
One player who is working toward an NBA comeback capable of filling a 3-and-D wing role is Glenn Robinson III. He spoke with DallasBasketballl.com to discuss his comeback pursuit and how he could impact a hopeful contender like the Mavs.
At 6-foot-6, he can guard multiple positions in addition to being a reliable 3-point shooter, an active cutter, and is known for being a locker room leader. He's a career 37.3 percent 3-point shooter, but particularly, has gone 41.4 percent from the corner and that accounts for 47.1 percent of his attempts.
Robinson was in the midst of a career-year with the Warriors in 2019-20 when he averaged 12.9 points and 4.7 rebounds in 31.6 minuets per game during 48 games with the Warriors before being traded midseason to the Philadelphia 76ers. On a contending Sixers team, he played 19.3 minutes per game but was injured as the team entered the NBA Bubble, preventing him from participating.
During free agency, Robinson signed with the Sacramento Kings on a one-year deal, but was waived midseason as he dealt with personal issues.
"I feel like I have unfinished business," Robinson said.
Robinson feels the time is right now to pursue making a full fledged comeback and has been training for many months to do so. Whether he's been working out on the court or by getting in work on sand or on hills, he's done it all to get back.
"I've just been preparing myself and training," Robinson said. "It's hard for guys to take two seasons off and come back, but I've been working on this for months now and grinding it out. I've been doing sand workouts, doing hill workouts, and getting work in on the court."
The time away from NBA action has helped Robinson to reflect on where he could grow and how he can help a team. He's spent a lot of time working out in Los Angeles, but did participate in a few private workouts for teams in Las Vegas. He has drawn interest from various NBA teams, including the Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors, and Milwaukee Bucks.
"I think if I was a general manager of an NBA team — the question that I've gotten is like, 'Hey, we know that you can play, we know your abilities, but how much do you want it? Are you willing to be as aggressive as possible to help us succeed? My answer to both is, yes," Robinson said.
"I learned that by the growth and maturity that I've had to go through throughout the past two seasons while making this comeback," Robinson explained. "I think it's really time to just give it my all, and seeing where the league is now, like I say, what I'm able to bring to the table, I think is more valuable than ever. For a balanced player at 6-foot-7 and 215 pounds that can defend and shoot, I think the sky's the limit right now for those, those type of wings."
Robinson views his skill-set as being especially helpful to add as a low-risk option for a contending team's bench unit. He if focused on making an impact on defense, similar to what he had to do during the early stage of his NBA career when backing up Paul George along with being a reliable corner 3-point shooter.
"I think the way I can help a contender and really any team is by being a smart veteran who's been around the game, who has a feel for the game on both ends. You're not taking a long bet on me," Robinson said. "You're taking a chance on a guy who can shoot the ball, especially corner 3s. That's really my main focus and I feel like one of my strongest suits besides my athleticism, is my ability to knock down the corner 3 and then also to defend, That's how I got into the league is by backing up Paul George and guarding him every single day."
"I feel like my defensive ability is always kind of under-looked, but I think that if you're looking at a list of guys, I feel like I'm a strong bet because of that," Robinson explained. "Especially, if we're talking about a 9th or 10th guy. I could be an insurance policy on the wing at the least."
Particularly on the defensive end, Robinson spent time learning from George before taking on a larger role upon his departure. By going head-to-head against him in practice, he was able to gain a lot of knowledge and tricks on that end amid his battles with LeBron James. He was also able to gain insight from Draymond Green during his season with the Golden State Warriors.
"I love to run, so my mindset is always to try to get stops as quickly as possible and to take off. So, that comes first. But learning from a guy like Paul George, who was able to obviously compete with LeBron [James] for all of those years when I was backing him up, I learned a lot of tricks to the game when it came to defense. As well as from my time at Michigan, learning defensive coverages. Then playing with Draymond [Green] and learning advanced techniques on how to rotate."
Robinson is eager to share the knowledge that he learned from his previous teammates with young players in the locker room. For a Mavs team with young talents like Josh Green, Jaden Hardy, Olivier-Maxence Prosper, and Dereck Lively II, that could be a helpful presence to add into the mix.
"I love to spread that knowledge to the young guys as well because those things were taught to me," Robinson said. "I've learned from guys like Draymond Green, I learned from Paul George and also Blake Griffin. Those are three guys who taught me a lot on the defensive end."
With how difficult it can be to find wing players that can contribute on offense and defense within the limitations of the salary cap, Robinson believes he'd be a safe bet for a team looking to fill a rotation spot since his skill-set would complement any superstar talent a team is focused around.
"It's so important nowadays and teams look are looking for guys who can play that 3-and-D role," Robinson said. "So, I feel like I'm a safe bet for what you're going to get if you're looking for somebody to come off the bench and not be a liability on defense. And then as well as to be able to fit within whoever you have, whatever superstar you have, and knock down shots or be aggressive as an attacker, for sure."
The Mavs have multiple superstars who need complementary talents around them between Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. As a competitor against both players, Robinson gained a lot of respect for Doncic and considers him as being behind only Kevin Durant in terms of the most difficult matchups in the NBA for a wing.
"Personally, guarding Luka [Doncic] when I was with the Warriors, I always tell people when they ask me, 'who's the toughest player that you've had to guard?' I always say [Kevin Durant] first. And then my second or third option is Luka, because I'm like, 'Man, you don't know sometimes what he's going to do,'" Robinson said.
Robinson admires the various layers of Doncic's skill-set that a defender has to account for, between his step-back 3 and the general challenge of containing a crafty driver with the size and finesse to do just about anything when getting downhill. He sees his skill-set as complementing Doncic well.
"[Doncic] can shoot the ball, he can get to the hole. He's very tricky with his handle, touch, and counters," Robinson said. "Regardless of that being said, if I was on the same team as him, I would see that as creating a lot of opportunities and a lot of open looks in order to help those guys out. Since I came into the league, I kind of had to adapt my mind to kind of work that way."
"I think that playing with Luka, playing with Kyrie — those are two guys who are going to get doubled and will create a lot of traffic to create a lot of open shots as well as fast break opportunities," Robinson explained. "This game is about who can basically get stops, but it's who can score the most and who can get the most runs in within that game. I feel like I can really bring that to a team by creating stops as well as creating that offense. I would love to help a team do that and add that to my resume by doing it for a contender as well."
An important distinction from Robinson compared to the typical 3-and-D wing is his cutting instincts and athleticism to execute on the finish. He has a keen understanding of when to cut and has a combination of athleticism and finishing touch that can make the defense pay as a backdoor cutter from the corner, or on a 45-cut from the wing when the defense is collapsing on a drive.
"I think my cutting ability goes back to Michigan with John Beilein. He had terminology for everything that we did, whether it was a cut or pivot," Robinson said. "Everything that we did had a meaning and a reasoning, with a name behind it. So that kind of taught me. I was playing with Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway, Jr. at the time, so I had to learn how could I have an impact on the team."
"As a second-round pick, I still had to do be an active cutter in the NBA," Robinson explained. "I had to play defense, I had to cut. I got my points and shined that way, and then eventually it kind of turned into a second nature thing."
"I've talked to a lot of scouts and several GMs who admit and say, 'Hey, we do think that what you bring to the table is more valuable now than ever right now,' and I see cutting as a part of that. "Robinson explained further. "I can feel when a guy like Kyrie [Irving] is able to make his move and if he's going to be able to get to the basket or not, and the moment I see that he's going to spin and he might not be able to get to the basket, I cut."
Robinson already has experience learning the nuances of how to fit alongside a superstar, with his time playing with Stephen Curry being a prime example. He views that experience as being especially helpful to adjust to complement Doncic and Irving.
"I try to feed off of how guys play and sometimes it takes a couple of weeks," Robinson said. "Like during my first couple weeks of training camp with the Warriors, I had to get a feel for how Steph [Curry] moves on the court. And as soon as I did that, I could easily get a flow with the guys."
During Robinson's lone season with the Warriors, injuries to key players created more opportunities for him to expand his game. One area he showed off was an ability to attack within the flow of the offense to get to the rim and take pull-up jumpers, whether coming off a pindown, handoffs, or ball screen. He has more ability in this area than the typical 3-and-D wing limited to just open catch-and-shoot looks.
"I do think that that's something that helped my game. I was happy that that season, being able to show my ability to put the ball on the ground and to create my own shot and be successful at it," Robinson said. "I look at my numbers back from that Warriors season, and I was really focused on shooting 50-40-90, and I remember talking to Zach LaVine before one of the games at half-court saying, 'Yo, keep going. You're, you're almost there.' I just look at it as a thing where I know my capabilities and I know I can still bring a lot to this league and to a lot of teams. I think they need it with the style of play now."
A key connection that Robinson shares with the Mavs organization is his experience playing under assistant coach Sean Sweeney when they were members of the Detroit Pistons. Robinson attributes his time with Sweeney for helping to get through a tough season with the Pistons that featured less playing time than expected, as well as being able to learn more nuances of NBA defense.
"I would say, when you say the name Sean Sweeney, he's one of the most respected defensive minds out there," Robinson said. "I really respect the guy and I think that what he's able to bring to the team as far as intensity and knowledge of the game.
"I respected his approach to being a coach and how he didn't take any day for granted when I was with him on the Pistons," Robinson explained. "He really taught me that because with the Pistons, I kind of went through a struggling time or wasn't playing as much. That was my first bigger contract, so I was going into it with high hopes and I wasn't playing as much. It was just some times where I needed to see someone to remind me not to take things for granted, and Sean Sweeney was like that every day.
"As far as the basketball side of it with him, I was able to really hone in and understand a lot of defensive principles that the league does," Robinson explained further. "I felt like he has a good grasp on that and I think with a few more defenders, or with a defender like me on the team, watching them over the course of the last couple years, I think that they're a guy like me away from a deep run after the moves they've made. I don't just say that because we're doing an interview, I really think that what I can bring to a team like that can help in the playoffs when you need to rely on guys to make shots as well as get stops and compete."
With Robinson's father, former NBA star Glenn Robinson, being in the same draft class as Mavs coach Jason Kidd in 1994 and being on Team USA together, Robinson has a lot of respect for him as a coach. He would view playing for Kidd as being a "full circle" type of experience.
"My dad and Jason Kidd have a very strong mutual respect for each other. They were in the same draft class and were on Team USA. So I know when I was growing up, man, I had like these like fat heads of Team USA and it was my dad and Jason Kidd, along with a few more players. My dad had made the team, but he sprained his ankle, so I don't think he played in the games."
"I just ran into Mike Dunleavy yesterday and he's was telling his son, 'When I was your age, Glen's dad was playing.' Everything is full circle and this would be another full circle type of moment," Robinson explained. "I really respect what he does as far as coaching and I know his style of play and how he's able to be a player's coach by allowing his players to be them and have success while doing that. I really respect that."
Another connection that Robinson shares with the Mavs organization is with Tim Hardaway Jr., who he credits for teaching him how to be a professional when the two were teammates on the Michigan Wolverines.
"Tim took me on my first and only official visit before I committed to Michigan," Robinson said. "After that Tim has been like a big brother to me. He really taught me how to work hard. He was the first guy who I really saw work hard, like him and Trey Burke.
"The thing about Tim is, we would all spend time on the court. We would all be in the gym until 3:00 AM, but Tim would go home and watch film," Robinson explained. "Tim would just go the extra mile and be really intentional while doing it. He really meant everything that he said in his preparation.
"I really respected the way that he prepared for every game, every practice, everything," Robinson explained further. "And that's where I learned how to be a professional first and I didn't even know it. I would love to team up with him again."
Grant Afseth is a Dallas Mavericks reporter for DallasBasketball.com and an NBA reporter for NBA Analysis Network. He previously covered the Indiana Pacers and NBA for CNHI's Kokomo Tribune and various NBA teams for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. Follow him on Twitter (@grantafseth), Facebook (@grantgafseth), and YouTube (@grantafseth).
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