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Tim BontempsESPN
Mitchell Robinson, center of New York Knicks, suffered a right hand fracture in Friday night’s 109-91 win over the Wizards in Washington, DC
Robinson was dominant in the first half, finishing with 10 points, 14 rebounds, an assist and two steals while going 5-for-6 off the field in 20 minutes of action. Knicks forward Julius Randle said after the game that Robinson was injured at 3:24 of the second quarter, when Robinson went forward to try to counter a shot from Wizards forward Rui Hachimura and hit his hand on Randle’s elbow.
“Yeah, it was probably the best half of the year for him,” said Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau after the game. “And of course we know how important he is to the team. Every time someone gets hurt, you feel confident for him.”
With Robinson out, the Knicks are filling the void with Nerlens Noel, who had four points, four rebounds, and three blocked shots in 16 minutes Friday, and veteran Taj Gibson, who had six points and three rebounds in 12 minutes.
It’s unclear how much time Robinson will miss, but Thibodeau said the team will know more after Robinson meets with the team’s doctors in New York on Saturday.
“We feel for him, but we have to prepare for the next one, and as you know, the game keeps coming,” said Thibodeau. “I thought Nerlens got in for him in the second half, and that’s the great value of a man like Taj on the roster.”
Robinson, 22, started Friday’s game averaging 8.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in a career-high 29.6 minutes per game for the Knicks, after entrenching himself tightly as the starting point of the team. After Noel started in the preseason, Thibodeau Robinson made the starter to start the season, and he has started all 27 games the Knicks have played on his way to a 12-15 record.
The Knicks have an option on Robinson’s contract for next season that they can either exercise, leaving him under contract for $ 1.8 million, which would make him an unrestricted free agent after the 2021-22 season, or decline , which would make him a limited free agent. agent after this season.
In addition to Noel and Gibson, Thibodeau said the team could get smaller. He knocked out rookie Obi Toppin, who had eight points and three rebounds while knocking out 4-for-5 on Friday-evening, as a possible option.
When asked if he thought the Knicks should go outside the organization to fill the void left by Robinson’s injury, Thibodeau said he thinks the team’s existing talent is good enough.
“We’ll have some flexibility,” said Thibodeau. “We can play smaller. I love what Taj gives us. Obviously, the great value in the things Mitch brought to the team is the defensive component. Nerlens does a lot of those same things extremely well, and of course Taj, that is. his strength throughout his career.
“I don’t want to lose that bit of it, but I like the way Obi arrives, he gives us good minutes. We could downsize and play Kevin. [Knox] in the four we could play Julius in the five.
“I love the versatility of the team, but every time you lose a player of Mitch’s caliber, we have to keep playing hard. You don’t replace such a player individually, you have to do it collectively and go one step further. “