Though the New York Knicks are typically seen as Jalen Brunson’s team, they have a lot of options to go to on the offensive side of the ball. However, for the most part, Mitchell Robinson is not known for his scoring, but rather his work rebounding and protecting the rim on the other side of the court.
However, Robinson’s trainer, Marcell Scott, believes Robinson should be getting more shots and touches on offense, which, in his mind, would subsequently lead to more success for the Knicks. In two posts made on Instagram, Scott urged New York to ‘include him in the offense.’
“Include him in the offense, and he will make free throws!” Scott wrote, per New York Basketball on X. “Point Blank.”
On the season, Robinson is averaging 4.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists, shooting 71.7% from the field on 2.8 shots per game, along with a 42.1% shooting percentage from the free throw line with an average of two foul shots per contest.
Robinson’s Trainer Calls Out Knicks
Along with his recent comments on ‘including him in the offense,’ this isn’t Scott’s first time begging for Robinson to be more involved in the offense. On December 13, New York Basketball on X posted a previous Instagram Story published by Scott, sending the same message.
“Let 23 get a few touches (throw it up there!) then watch the free throws start falling,” he captioned a photo of Robinson dunking the ball.
As mentioned, Robinson has never been an offensive hub. He’s also missed a ton of time over the past few years with numerous injuries, which, up until recently, were a major cause for his name being floated in trade rumors.
Through his eight seasons with the Knicks, Robinson has never taken an average of more than six shots per game from the field, despite shooting above 65% in all but one season. Additionally, he’s never attempted more than 2.5 free throws per game in any of those seasons, with a career free-throw percentage of 51.7%.
Robinson remains a top-tier defender and rebounder, as seen with his efficiency in games like the NBA Cup Final against the San Antonio Spurs. Yet still, with the star power on this current Knicks roster, he hasn’t been asked to hold a major offensive workload behind players like Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart.
Regardless, that didn’t hold Scott back from making his feelings clear: if Robinson gets more touches on offense, he’ll get to the free-throw line more, and seemingly help New York succeed.
Knicks Trade Rumors
Though the Knicks look strong as ever, winning nine of their last ten games and hoisting the NBA Cup, trade rumors have persisted. Insider and analyst Zach Lowe believes New York will ‘sniff around’ for a small trade to add some depth before the deadline, but more recently, another big man was named in trade rumors.
According to James L. Edwards of The Athletic, the Knicks might be looking at a trade that sends out Guerschon Yabusele for another bench piece as they prepare for a title run.
Yabusele came in as a free agent over the summer after a strong showing for the Philadelphia 76ers last season and the French National Team in the 2024 Paris Olympics, but so far, hasn’t been as advertised.
“Multiple league executives believe the Knicks would have to attach something to Yabusele in order to have a chance to move him before the deadline,” Edwards reported. “Other than what New York does or doesn’t do with Yabusele, the franchise has long put out feelers about adding another ballhandler and/or frontcourt player, per league sources.”
In 26 appearances, Yabusele is averaging only three points and 2.2 rebounds on 39.4% shooting in 9.6 minutes per game, rarely finding himself as an impactful player on this Knicks roster.
While Robinson was the previously listed New York big man to potentially be on the chopping block, Yabusele has taken his spot as they hope to add a bit more impact off the bench in the second half of the season.
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