Mitchell Robinson was supposed to give the Knicks a jolt in the Finals with limited minutes. Instead, through three games against the Spurs, the reserve big man has yet to deliver the interior impact New York counted on, and Game 3 only deepened the concern.
The interest around Robinson is easy to understand. He had been discussed heading into the matchup as someone who could swing a series even without heavy usage, and he has had success slowing down Victor Wembanyama before. That made him one of the cleaner answers in a Finals that was expected to hinge on the paint, where the Knicks believed they could get elite center play in 48 uninterrupted minutes by using him behind the starters.
Robinson’s best line so far came in Game 1, when he scored two points and grabbed six rebounds in 13 minutes. But the series has gone backward from there. Through three games, he has not posted a positive plus-minus, and his production has been limited to six offensive rebounds, one steal and one block. In Game 2, he finished minus-10 in 14 minutes, made three of six free throws and scored two baskets.
Game 3 was worse. Robinson looked very bad and was repeatedly caught in situations that exposed the Knicks defensively. In the first quarter, he was flat-footed on a screen for De'Aaron Fox and gave up an easy pull-up jumper. Later, he was on the floor when Dylan Harper finished a highlight dunk after a Kornet screen led to Landry Shamet being blown up. In the third quarter, he accepted a screen from Keldon Johnson on a delayed transition play, which opened Wembanyama and led to a layup for Johnson. He was also right there on a failed lob attempt but did little to disrupt it.
The deeper problem is that Robinson has not been doing the things he is known for during much of the series. His rebounding and rim protection are usually what separate him from a standard backup big. Against San Antonio, he has not matched the physicality, energy or attention to detail the Spurs and the Finals stage demand, and that has left the Knicks without the dependable center minutes they expected from him. They are still the favorites, but that status is hard to lean on when one of their most useful bench pieces has not played to form.
What happens next for Robinson is the series’ most practical question. If the Knicks keep expecting him to be the answer behind their starters, he has to become the player they thought they were getting. If he cannot, the gap between what New York planned at center and what it is actually getting could keep widening in a Finals that leaves very little room for missed assignments.
