New York Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson was the center of attention in the finest way possible in Game 1. That’s literally a tall task when Joel Embiid is on the other side.
Game 1 offered Robinson a throwback performance in the sense that he was the center playing the crucial minutes for the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden: Robinson put forth one of the finest relief efforts in metropolitan postseason memory as the hosts planted euphoria and a series lead with a 111-104 triumph over the Philadelphia 76ers in the opener of the division rivals’ Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series.
It’s perhaps appropriate that Robinson, the longest-tenured Knick, played a vital role in the opening game of the team’s most legitimate championship case in quite some time: the sixth-year New Yorker had 12 rebounds, eight points, and four blocks off the bench.
Apr 20, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) after being
Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
In his busiest night since returning from a December ankle injury that cost him 50 games (32 minutes), Robinson also tied a franchise playoff record with seven offensive rebounds off the bench, joining the company of Anthony Mason (1993), Kurt Thomas (1999), and Marcus Camby (2000).
Robinson’s biggest impact, ironically enough, came in a lacking sense on the box score:…
