The only thing missing is bubble wrap.
The Knicks are doing everything they can to keep the oft-injured Mitchell Robinson healthy and let him play much of the preseason.
It continued in the exhibition finale Friday night against the Hornets – a 113-108 Knicks victory – with Robinson healthy but inactive.
Load management is nothing new in the NBA, and the Knicks are looking to utilize it more under new coach Mike Brown than under former coach Tom Thibodeau.
“If it was a regular-season game or a playoff game, in my opinion, Mitch would be playing,” Brown said.
Brown said Casey Smith, who leads the team’s performance group, recommended the team retain the 7-foot-1 Robinson, an elite rim protector and offensive rebounder.
When asked if there is a specific plan for the regular season, in terms of minutes and games played for Robinson, Brown said he had not been told anything yet.
“Our performance group, led by Casey, and it’s beyond me in terms of getting into the details of it,” he said when asked about the reasoning behind the move.
Robinson was held out on Monday and played just 13 minutes in the previous match. Robinson has only recently practiced, which the Knicks say is part of their plan.
Robinson played in just 17 games during the regular season last year. After Robinson made his debut on February 28, the team often limited his minutes and did not let him play back-to-backs.
Entering the final season of his contract, Robinson starred in the playoffs and helped the Knicks reach the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 25 years.
He averaged 4.7 points, 7.1 rebounds and posted a NET rating of plus-2.7 in the postseason — meaning the Knicks outscored opponents by 2.7 points per 100 possessions with Robinson on the floor.
Injuries have been a constant for Robinson, who averaged 48.1 regular-season games in his seven-year career.
Given his impact when healthy, it makes sense that the Knicks would do whatever they could to keep him on the court.
Robinson has started the three preseason games he has played in, and Brown plans to use him alongside Karl-Anthony Towns, possibly in his starting lineup.
Brown likes the duo together because it allows him to move Towns into different positions, making it harder for opposing defenses to line up against him as a starting point.
Starting Towns at the four gives the Knicks more length.
“When you play with two greats, it’s going to be exciting to watch,” the 27-year-old Robinson said recently. “We did a little bit of it last year and had success with it. So we’ll see where it goes from there.”
On paper, it looks like it could be an exciting and productive combination.
In 165 playoff minutes last spring, they combined to produce a plus-4.4 NET rating.
Brown has said it gives the Knicks a different dimension. But it can only work if Robinson is healthy, and the team is doing everything it can to make sure that happens.
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