New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson has been diagnosed with a broken right pinky finger and has no timeline for a return, according to The Athletic. It's unclear when Robinson suffered the injury or whether he'll be ready for Game 1 of the 2026 NBA Finals on Wednesday against either the Oklahoma City Thunder or San Antonio Spurs.
The Knicks, who are in the Finals for the first time since 1999, have been dominant in the postseason. They've won 11 straight games dating back to Game 4 of the first round, when they trailed the Atlanta Hawks 2-1. They then swept the Philadelphia 76ers and Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round and Eastern Conference Finals to represent the East in the Finals.
Robinson's injury, whether he plays through it or not, is a big blow for the Knicks, and will make it much more difficult for them to win their first title since 1973.
Robinson had finally been healthy
Robinson, the longest-tenured Knick, has dealt with injury issues ever since New York drafted him in the second round in 2018. He's reached the 70-game mark just once, has never played in more than 72 games and has appeared in 31 or fewer games in three of his eight seasons.
Along the way, Robinson has needed surgery for a broken right hand, a broken right foot and a broken right thumb, as well as multiple procedures on a stress fracture in his left ankle.
This season, though, he had largely been healthy. He appeared in 60 games -- the first time he reached that mark since the 2021-22 season -- and would have appeared in more had the Knicks not managed his workload to try and ensure he would be healthy for the playoffs. In 19.6 minutes, Robinson averaged 5.7 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks on 72.3% shooting as the team's backup center.
While Robinson's playing time and production have decreased slightly in the playoffs, due in part to poor free-throw shooting that makes it difficult to keep him on the floor in certain situations, he's still been a big part of the Knicks' success as the only big man to see regular playing time off the bench. In 14.2 minutes, he's averaged 5.3 points and 5.5 rebounds on 73.7% shooting.
How would the Knicks miss Robinson?
The Knicks don't run plays for Robinson -- 23 of his 38 shots in the playoffs have been from putbacks or cuts -- and he doesn't put up big numbers, but he's still a crucial part of their rotation.
First and foremost, Robinson is one of the best offensive rebounders in the league. He was fifth in the league during the regular season at 4.2 per game, and has grabbed 2.5 per game in the playoffs in limited minutes. Per databallr, the Knicks' offensive rebounding rate with Robinson on the floor in the playoffs is 39.4%, and plummets to 28.6% when he sits (garbage time excluded). Robinson is a big reason why the Knicks lead all teams in the postseason with 17.7 second-chance points per game, and creating extra opportunities will be especially important against the Thunder and Spurs, both of whom have elite defenses.
Robinson also helps create easy opportunities for his teammates by drawing a significant amount of fouls. He is an exceptionally poor free-throw shooter -- 50.8% for his career, 30.2% this postseason -- which leads teams to use the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy against him. While that does often put him at the line and lead to empty possessions, it also gets the Knicks in the bonus.
On the other end, Robinson's size and strength would be crucial against either Western Conference opponent, both of whom play a physical brand of basketball and like to get into the paint. If he was healthy Robinson may have actually seen increased playing time in the Finals to help the Knicks control the glass and deal with either the combination of Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein or Victor Wembanyama.
Who would play if Robinson is out?
If Robinson is unable to play in the Finals, the Knicks would likely turn to second-year center Ariel Hukporti to back up Karl-Anthony Towns. The little-used Hukporti has only appeared in 79 career games and has played just 70 minutes in the playoffs, but he's the only other true big man on the roster.
Yes, the Knicks could extend Towns' minutes, or try to go small with a combination of Josh Hart and OG Anunoby as their "bigs" here and there, but at some point they're going to need some size off the bench, no matter the opponent. And at the very least, the 7-foot, 240-pound Hukporti is a big body to throw at Wembanyama or the Holmgren-Hartenstein duo.
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