00:00Tough news for the New York Knicks and their fans as they found out center Mitchell Robinson
00:04has suffered a broken right pinky. He is the longest tenured Knick. The Knicks
00:08said to play in the NBA Finals for the first time in 27 years next week, and this team has
00:13been relatively healthy. Now, he broke his pinky earlier this week. We do not know exactly when
00:18that happened, but this is, make no mistake about it, this is a tough blow for the Knicks.
00:24Mitchell Robinson was fourth in the league in offensive rebounds per game at just over four a
00:29game, but first in the league in offensive rebounding percentage, just over 20% of his
00:35rebounds were offensive rebounds. So this is a guy who's been impactful on the glass. We know what
00:38he can do defensively. Yes, he's had his struggles at the free throw line, but Mitchell Robinson not
00:44being available for the Knicks, whether they play the Thunder or the Spurs is huge. Now, we know the
00:49size that the Spurs have with Victor Wambanyama and what threat that poses and Luke Cornett coming off
00:55the bench. And the Knicks are now going to be without Mitchell Robinson. We do not know for
01:00how long. There was no timetable for his return, according to the reporting. We first heard this
01:05reporting from The Athletic. So it'll be very interesting. Is he able to play in this series
01:10at all? Now, with breaks, you don't know how things work out. You have to see what happens when that
01:15swelling goes down in the finger or whatever that's broken. So you have to see how that goes.
01:21For now, Knicks fans have to think that it's just next man up. And this does affect the Knicks
01:27in a major way. This does affect them. It does impact them because now you have to go to Ariel
01:33Hockporty, the center who's going to get major minutes here. It's only long, just under 50 minutes
01:39here in the playoffs. The Knicks no longer have the opportunity to go to their double big lineup
01:44that they've used often with Cat and Mitchell Robinson. And I think really where the Knicks are going to
01:49feel it is we know how Mitchell Robinson could change games. We know how he can change it with
01:54his offensive rebounding. I brought you the numbers earlier, but he can also change games
01:58defensively, getting blocks, finishing possessions on the defensive rebounds, getting the ball out to
02:03the guards, starting fast breaks, the blocks. This was just if the Knicks were going to face the Spurs
02:08in particular, some size to throw at Victor Wambinyama. And then even battle with an Isaiah
02:13Hartenstein or a Chet Holmgren on the side of the Oklahoma City Thunder. So anytime you're losing
02:18signs like this, this hurts the Knicks, a guy that impacts their offense and defense
02:23in major ways. Now the hope I think for Knicks fans is you hope that he can get back and
02:28that he is
02:29able to impact the series in some ways. Don't know how long that it could be. Can they tape the
02:33pinky
02:34finger? Can he play through the pain? These are all things we have to wait and hear and see from
02:39the
02:39Knicks in the next couple of days. I'm sure that our Stefan Bondi will be on top of this, but
02:43right now
02:44the situation is that the Knicks will be without Mitchell Robinson for some time and the status of
02:50him going forward and ability to play in the finals is unknown. I think if you're a Knicks fan, you're
02:55hoping for the best case scenario that you can come back at some point in the finals and be healthy
02:59and
03:00impact this team. This obviously is a tough blow for Mitchell Robinson personally, who has dealt with
03:04a lot of injuries, who was set to be a free agent after this season and is looking for a
03:09new contract.
03:09So this is a frustrating injury for Mitchell Robinson in a season in which he's been relatively healthy.
03:15We saw him not playing back-to-backs and the Knicks do everything they could to preserve his
03:19health because they know how impactful he can be to this Knicks team and he has impacted this team in
03:25the playoffs. You'll think about the fact that yes, you can have the hack-a-mitch situations, but now
03:30if you're the Knicks, you just have to think about next man up and Ariel Huporty is going to be
03:35thrust
03:36into the fire in the biggest stage of his career in the NBA finals and just how are the Knicks
03:41going to be
03:41able to get through it. I don't think it's daunting for them. This is a team that's had a lot
03:46of belief.
03:47They've overcome a lot of adversity. And so if you liked seeing the adversity the Knicks have overcome
03:51through its playoffs, this is just another thing. Sometimes it gets tested on the court. Sometimes it gets tested
03:56with injuries and your roster and what the resolve is. But I'm sure when we hear from the Knicks
04:01tomorrow and throughout the weekend, as they prepare for game one of the NBA finals next Wednesday,
04:05you're going to hear a lot about next man up. Now there's no way you can replace Mitchell Robinson.
04:10He is one of the elite rebounders in the league, one of the elite backup centers, one of the elite
04:16offensive rebounders with his impact on one of the elite defensive players and just how we could change
04:21a game. But you're going to have to do the little things. You're going to have to ask others to
04:25step up.
04:26Now the Knicks is a defensive unit. They've been fantastic throughout this playoffs,
04:29but this is now a new challenge for the Knicks. So we'll see how this impacts this team going
04:34forward. But it's really going to be interesting to see one, what the news is around Mitchell
04:39Robinson and the timetable for his return. If one is eventually set, is he going to be able to play
04:44at all in this NBA finals? And then what the resolve is of this Knicks team as they try to
04:49move forward
04:50without their center, their defensive stalwart, their big man in the middle. We'll have more updates for
04:56you coming up here on the New York Post Sports YouTube channel. But that's the latest news now.
05:01Knicks, Mitchell Robinson suffering a broken right pinky finger. We'll have you all posted
05:07with much more news coming your way.
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