After winning Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Indiana Pacers, the New York Knicks will have to go the rest of the series without one of their most important players, that being center Mitchell Robinson.
After missing Game 4 of the first-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers due to a scary fall and ankle concerns, Mitchell Robinson recovered and played the rest of the series, playing 25 minutes in Game 5 and 18 in the series-clinching Game 6. Robinson also played 12 minutes in New York's Game 1 victory over Indiana and only had two points and two rebounds, going 1/1 from the field.
Unfortunately, the following day, it was revealed that Robinson suffered a re-injury to his left ankle, this one being a stress injury, and will miss at least the next 6-8 weeks, thus ruling him out for the rest of this series, a potential Conference Finals series, and the majority of a potential NBA Finals series.
Knicks say Mitchell Robinson sustained a stress injury to his left ankle and will be re-evaluated in 6 to 8 weeks.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 8, 2024
This is a devastating blow for New York. While Robinson didn't contribute all that much in Game 1 and has been relatively quiet in the playoffs as a whole, his absence still leaves a bevy of unplayed minutes in New York's center rotation that now have to be taken up by Isaiah Hartenstein and Precious Achiuwa.
For New York, a team that already runs a 7-8 man rotation, this is a crucial blow to their bench depth, as Robinson was one of three players they brought off the bench following Bojan Bogdanovic being ruled out for the rest of the playoffs.
With Robinson gone, Tom Thibodeau will have to decide between giving Hartenstein and Precious Achiuwa more minutes or activating another player off New York's bench such as Alec Burks to alleviate the already heavy load put on his starters.
While this injury is obviously unfortunate for Robinson, Indiana can very well benefit from this, as they can choose to run faster and tire out New York's players more, since Robinson was one of the most athletic players on the Knicks roster. The Knicks will obviously miss his athleticism and rim protection, and this can open up a chance for more drives to the rim and finishes through contact.
With New York missing three rotation players in Robinson, Bogdanovic, and All-Star Julius Randle, the team is clearly depleted and now is a better chance than ever for Indiana to steal some wins and hopefully turn the series momentum around.