New York Knicks: Mitchell Robinson would be great in Slam Dunk Contest
By Sam Friedman
When first drafted by the New York Knicks, Mitchell Robinson’s projection was marred in questions. But, because of his physical abilities, we’ve seen a meteoric rise in his stock. Those abilities would fit well in the dunk contest.
The was an uneasy amount of red flags that came up on Mitchell Robinson before the start of the season, making the New York Knicks selection of him questionable at first.
He was a top 10 recruit coming out of High School and had offers from every major school in the nation. However, he decided to attend Western Kentucky, as his God Father is an assistant coach there.
Picking a school because of a connection doesn’t always work out. See Michael Porter Jr, RJ Hunter, and Doug McDermott for example.
More from Empire Writes Back
- Caesars New York Promo Code: Win $250 Bonus GUARANTEED on ANY Bet!
- Last Chance Caesars Promo: Claim $1,250 Bonus for ANY MLB Bet!
- Caesars New York Promo Code Gives TWO Chances to Win Betting on Your Yankees!
- PointsBet New York Promo: FIVE $100 Bonus Bets to Back the Yankees or Mets!
- Caesars NY Promo: $1,250 Bonus to Celebrate the Return of Judge!
Robinson had initially signed a National Letter of Intent to play at Texas A&M, but, he actually didn’t end up playing college basketball anywhere.
Robinson came into the draft out of shape. A year without true competition will do that to a player. His agent ended up cancelling workouts because of Robinson’s physical fitness.
Fast forward a couple of months, and Robinson is the early favorite to be the steal of the 2018 Draft.
He led the Summer League in blocks, averaging 4.0 per contest so we can add that to his resume.
Robinson is extremely long, can swat shots off the top of the backboard, and won’t turn 21 until April 2019. He has all the physical tools to succeed.
It’s a shame that all teams not named the Knicks passed on him, something Robinson definitely won’t forget.
We think he will be great for the Knicks in general, but now, we shift focus to a personal goal of Robinson’s, wanting to be in the dunk contest. His attributes suit him well for this too!
https://twitter.com/23savage____/status/1032456306114875393
However, there were still a few gut reactions that came to mind, when I first saw this tweet.
The first is, lets pump the brakes. Robinson hasn’t suited up for a competitive basketball game in an egregiously long time.
Sure the Summer League is great, and helps a lot of players make rosters, like Alonzo Trier, but it is only August still.
Another things about the Summer League is that Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond, Al Horford and all the other Eastern Conference big men weren’t playing in it this year.
With Kristaps Porzingis out and Robinson in, the rookie big will have the ultimate trail during the first few months of the season.
On top of this, as mentioned before, Robinson was not in good enough shape to workout for NBA teams, but now he’s ready to compete with the most athletic people in the most athletic sport?
After that gut reaction, I started to realize that this is a great sign for the Knicks. Their new project is ready to compete. A switch has flipped with this Knick roster. The people on the team ACTUALLY WANT TO WIN SOMETHING.
There are videos every day of the guards on the roster working out together, posting on social media of group training sessions, and actually caring about the product they put on the court.
This attitude is contagious, as it shows with Robinson. Robinson, who didn’t go to college and wasn’t in shape for workouts pre-draft, now wants to compete in the dunk contest!
Next. Why Kyrie and Jimmy Butler are coming to the Knicks. dark
The Knicks haven’t a Dunk Contest participant since, ironically, Nate Robinson. It would be a shining moment if the next Robinson put on the #4, paying homage to Nate’s dunk contest greatness.