It's do-or-die for the New York Knicks in the 2025-26 NBA season, and their top-end talent must stay healthy throughout the incoming campaign if they wish to raise the Larry O'Brien trophy come season's end.
New York may not need to worry as much about their superstar scoring tandem of Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, or their iron-man wing Mikal Bridges, but the coaching staff will certainly be keeping an eye on their 7-foot rebounding big man Mitchell Robinson.
Due in large part to his chronicled injury history, the 27-year-old big man will reportedly be held to a pre-determined workload plan this season to keep him in the best shape possible for the postseason.
"Knicks center Mitchell Robinson did not practice today as part of teams’s plan to manage his workload," SNY's Ian Begley shared via X on Wednesday.
"Heading into regular season, team plans to manage Robinson’s minutes over course of year given his injury history, sources told SNY."
"Based on NYK plan, Robinson will be held out of some games out of precaution, per sources. Will be interesting to see how Knicks handle Robinson’s availability over the course of the season considering how important he is and considering their big-picture goals."
The Knicks' concern makes total sense, considering the weight of an unfamiliar 'championship-or-bust' season for the storied franchise along with Robinson's consistent injury troubles that have plagued him since the 2020-21 season.
Since 2020, Robinson has suited up for roughly 51% of his team's regular season outings, and the franchise wishes to keep the game-wrecking rebounder in good enough shape to last through another deep playoff run.
He may not take the floor as much as his team would like him to, but there's no denying that his impact on the boards and as a formidable rim-deterrent means so much to their success.
In New York's thrilling six-game series victory against the Boston Celtics in the second round of the 2025 postseason, 3.8 of Robinson's 8.0 rebounds in the series came on the offensive glass, allowing the Knicks to capitalize on plenty of second-chances.
If the Knicks wish to contend for a title in 2025-26, Robinson's ability to stick to the team's carefully laid out workload plan will play an integral part in achieving that goal.
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