The Knicks lost the center who anchored a championship and replaced him with a 32-year-old on a minimum-range deal. Mitchell Robinson signed with the Boston Celtics for three years, $47.4 million, and New York answered by agreeing to a one-year, $3.9 million contract with Andre Drummond.
It is a fair bet on paper, but it’s also the entire frontcourt behind Karl-Anthony Towns. That is the part that should keep Mike Brown up at night.
What the Knicks actually lost
Robinson gave New York minutes that never showed up cleanly in a box score. He averaged 5.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 19.6 minutes during the 2025-26 regular season, then shrank his role to something surgical in the playoffs, shooting 72.5 percent across the title run on putbacks and rolls. The value was rim protection and offensive-glass work that let Brown play a true double-big front next to Towns without bleeding interior defense.
Mitchell Robinson playing for the Knicks
Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
New York also lost its third-string insurance. Ariel Hukporti signed a one-year, $3.4 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, which briefly left Towns as the only center on the roster of the reigning champions. Drummond is the fix for the first problem. The second one is still open.
What Drummond brings
Drummond is not a downgrade in production, and that surprises people who remember him only as a fading name. He posted 6.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks in 19.5 minutes over 63 games with the 76ers last season, with 25 starts, shooting 47.2 percent from the field. His rebounding rate remains elite for a reserve, and his usage in Philadelphia — 15 to 20 minutes a night behind a starting center — maps almost exactly onto the role New York needs filled.
Andre Drummond, mikal bridges, NBA: Playoffs-Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
2025-26 regular season Team MPG PPG RPG BPG FG%
Mitchell Robinson Knicks 19.6 5.7 8.8 1.2 72.5*
Andre Drummond 76ers 19.5 6.4 8.4 0.8 47.2
*Robinson’s 72.5% mark reflects postseason shooting on putbacks and rolls; his regular-season efficiency ran lower on higher volume.
The gap between the two is smaller than the price gap suggests. Robinson is the better rim protector and the better switch defender, but Drummond gives New York comparable rebounding and interior size for roughly a twelfth of the annual cost, on a deal that expires in a year and clogs nothing on the books.
The problem the signing doesn’t solve
Depth is where the plan gets thin. The Knicks sit roughly $8 million under the second apron, operate under a James Dolan mandate to stay below that line, and hold one open roster spot they can only fill at the veteran minimum. When Dallas matched New York’s offer sheet for Moussa Cisse, one of the more realistic depth targets came off the board, leaving Leon Rose to fill the final spot with a minimum body or work the trade market in-season.
Andre Drummond, knicks, NBA: Boston Celtics at Philadelphia 76ers
Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Towns carried a heavy load and stayed mostly available, but a champion built around one true center plus a 32-year-old on a one-year deal is one injury away from a crisis. Drummond has missed stretches in three of the last four seasons. If either big man goes down, the drop-off behind them is a minimum-salary flier or a small-ball look that surrenders the exact interior advantage that defined the title team.
The bottom line
Rose made the sensible move at the price ownership allowed. Drummond is a legitimate NBA center who rebounds, sets screens, and finishes at the rim, and on a one-year minimum-range deal he is close to the best value available. The concern was never the starter. It is the two-deep. New York won a ring on frontcourt size and depth, and it enters the defense of that ring with the size intact and the depth on a knife’s edge.
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Anthony Rivardo is the COO of Empire Sports Media and the host of Fireside Giants, a New York Giants ... More about Anthony Rivardo