SAN ANTONIO – Except for Jalen Branson's lack, the Knicks went all out in Wednesday's 120-105 defeat to the Spurs.
That's because Mitchell Robinson, who was listed as suspicious in “injury management,” was declared available and scored 13 points on 11 boards from the bench.
Tom Thibodeau didn't rule out Robinson against the Hornets on Thursday, but the center sat one by one in a row of sets against the Lakers earlier this month.
“Tomorrow, tomorrow, we'll deal with it,” Thibodeau said of the Charlotte match. “Today we're just dealing with it.”
The logic suggests that Robinson will not be thrust in succession.
The 26-year-old's plan, not playing within 10 months before returning from ankle surgery on the last day of February, was to always strengthen his conditioning and plan a playoff health course while operating at a few minutes' limit.
If he plays for Charlotte, that would be amazing.
The Knicks have four more consecutive sets this season, including next week with the Mavericks (Tuesday) and the Clippers (Wednesday).
Thibodeau said Robinson is operating with a “guideline” of about 24 minutes, which “probably increases a few.”
At San Antonio on Wednesday, Robinson scored 17 minutes on 13 points and 11 boards. 11 boards (heavy doses were included along with the town of Karl Anthony in the alignment of the two towers, but Knicks were 52-44 overall.
“It's something we've come to work on,” Robinson said. Obviously, rebounds are a big part of the game. So we didn't rebound it well and the shots didn't come in. We've now fixed it. ”
Talk about roller coasters.
Josh Hart went from no points on Saturday to historic triple double on Monday to just two points on Wednesday.
The forward took just four shots in 35 minutes against the Spurs, but once again begged for more teamwork.
“I think it's a combination of not falling the ball, but we have to make it easier for each other,” he said. “We have to playmaking for each other and put ourselves in a situation where we can succeed. You knew it would be a struggle without it. [Brunson]. But we need to make each other's games easier. And it feels like we didn't do that today. ”
