SAN ANTONIO — Other than missing Jalen Brunson, the Knicks were at full strength for Wednesday’s 120-105 loss to the Spurs.
That is because Mitchell Robinson, who was previously uncertain due to “injury management,” was ultimately considered ready to play and contributed 13 points and 11 rebounds coming off the bench.
Tom Thibodeau did not completely rule out Robinson from playing on Thursday against the Hornets. However, earlier this month, the center did miss one game of a back-to-back set against the Lakers.
“We’ll deal with tomorrow, tomorrow,” Thibodeau said of the Charlotte game. “We’re just dealing with today, today.”
Logic suggests Robinson won’t be thrust into a back-to-back.
The strategy for the 26-year-old, who had not played for 10 months due to ankle surgery before returning at the end of February, was always to gradually improve his fitness and carefully plan for his playoff readiness while adhering to a limited playing time.
So if he plays in Charlotte, it would be surprising.
The Knicks have four more back-to-back sets this season, including next week against the Mavericks (Tuesday) and Clippers (Wednesday).
Thibodeau said Robinson is operating with a “guideline” of about 24 minutes and that will “probably increase some.”
In San Antonio on Wednesday, Robinson logged 17 minutes with 13 points and 11 boards — including a heavier dose alongside Karl-Anthony Towns in a Two Towers alignment — but the Knicks were outrebounded overall, 52-44.
“It’s something we got to work on,” Robinson said. Obviously rebounding is a big part of the game. So we didn’t rebound that well and the shots didn’t go in. We just got to fix it.”
Talk about a rollercoaster.
Josh Hart went from no points on Saturday to a historic triple-double on Monday to just two points on Wednesday.
The forward, who took just four shots in 35 minutes against the Spurs, again implored for more teamwork.
“I think it’s a combination of the ball not falling but also we have to make it easier for each other,” he said. “We have to playmake for each other and put ourselves in situations where we can be successful. You knew that was going to be the struggle without [Brunson]. But we have to make the game easier for each other. And I feel like we didn’t do that today.”