Sources: Mitchell Robinson's name came up in Knicks' talks with Portland about potential Jrue Holiday trade

If you ask a Knick player or coach about Mitchell Robinson, you usually hear some variation of the same answer. They talk about his importance to the team and his nuanced impact on the game.

“The things that he brings to our team oftentimes you’re not going to measure in a boxscore,” Tom Thibodeau said during training camp. “Where he has great value is rim protection, he’s top five in the league; offensive rebounding, top five in the league; total rebounding, top five in the league; terrific pick and roll defender; great pressure on the rim; getting out of screens.

“And when you have somebody that gets out of screens like that, he’s bringing bodies with him which is opening up the floor for us. So it’s forcing the defense to collapse and I think when you really study it, I think four years ago he had a negative net rating and last year you look at his net rating and it’s over five. So it’s almost a 10-point improvement per 48 minutes, that’s significant.”

Robinson’s significance for this year’s Knicks team can’t be overstated, and he seems primed to have another high-impact year.

In two preseason games, Robinson is averaging 3.5 offensive rebounds, two blocks and a steal in 22 minutes. He’s made nine of his 10 field goal attempts and the Knicks are outscoring their opponents by 16 points when he’s on the floor. 

Obviously, it’s just preseason, it’s never wise to make bold predictions off of games in early October, but you’ve seen enough from Robinson over the past 12 months to know that he’s capable of doing this consistently.

“He’s probably the most important guy on the team, honestly,” Quentin Grimes said during training camp. “Defensively, offensively, he gets offensive rebounds like crazy. So he definitely anchors the defense and just knowing when we’re in the pick-and-roll coverage, I know he’s got my back if I get beat. So having a guy like that protecting the paint and altering shots, it makes my job a lot easier to pressure up (opponents as a defender and) make it uncomfortable for them because I know he’s got my back.”

Robinson is entering the second year of a four-year $60 million deal signed in the 2022 offseason. Some connected to Robinson believe the 25-year-old has significant room to grow. Whether he develops an offensive game outside of the restricted area remains to be seen. 

But even if he never develops into a perimeter threat, Robinson still has significant value on offense, just listen to Thibodeau:

“Oftentimes people will overlook what Mitch brings to the team (on offense). And I think it’s a big mistake,” Thibodeau said on Saturday. “I think he brings great value to the team because of offensive rebounding, the pressure on the rim, the screening. Those things are huge for our offense.”

Thibodeau was talking before the Knicks lost to the Timberwolves on Saturday night. It was just a preseason game, but Robinson seemed to be playing with an edge against Minnesota.

He had a remarkable block on Karl-Anthony Towns in the third quarter and a few tough offensive rebounds.

Was he motivated to play against Towns, a player often connected to the Knicks as a trade target? Even if he was, Robinson probably wouldn’t say so publicly. But he’s been in the league long enough to know that any trade that brings a star to New York could send him out of town. 

Robinson’s name came up in the Knicks’ talks with Portland about a potential Jrue Holiday trade, per SNY sources. Obviously, nothing came to fruition there, but any team talking to the Knicks about a significant deal will probably ask about Robinson. He’s young, productive and on a reasonable contract. 

If the Knicks traded for Towns or Joel Embiid, it’s logical to assume that Robinson would be in the deal since he’d overlap positionally with either player.

Replacing Robinson would be difficult, but that hypothetical ‘what if’ isn’t relevant today.

Robinson is a Knick, he’ll be on the floor for New York when it opens the season against Boston, and if the Knicks get off to a strong start, his play will likely be a major factor.

“He’s a monster. Running the floor. He blocks everything. People are scared to go against him when he’s down there,” RJ Barrett says. “He sets screens. He’s a huge lob threat. He’s really good for us on both ends and we definitely need him.”

WHAT ABOUT KAT?

Towns and Thibodeau have both said that any tension between them is gone now. That will, of course, lead to speculation about Towns being dealt to New York.

A video surfaced on Saturday of Towns greeting Knicks president Leon Rose, team governor James Dolan and senior vice president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas. That will probably fuel more speculation about Towns to New York.

My take on this hasn’t changed much since the offseason; as noted then, I think the Knicks could have traded for Towns over the summer if there was enough internal support to make the move. Obviously, New York wasn’t willing to make the deal then. 

Could that change at some point this season? 

Sure, anything’s possible. This team needs to take a step forward from its strong 2023-24 season. So maybe a slow start leads them to think about an in-season trade. But a deal for Towns would require a level organizational support for the move that wasn’t there this summer.