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New York Knicks: 5 realistic goals for Mitchell Robinson

By James Kattato

Mitchell Robinson #26 of the New York Knicks celebrates the win over the Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden on April 07, 2019 in New York City. The New York Knicks defeated the Washington Wizards 113-110.NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Mitchell Robinson #26 of the New York Knicks celebrates the win over the Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden on April 07, 2019 in New York City. The New York Knicks defeated the Washington Wizards 113-110.NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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After a great rookie season, New York Knicks’ big man Mitchell Robinson has an opportunity to tackle some lofty goals in his second year.

Mitchell Robinson is establishing himself as one of the league’s brightest and youngest players. He accomplished a lot in his rookie season, but there are a few things that could catapult him into the NBA’s elite come next year.

Become a leader in the locker room

With all of the youth on this Knicks roster, this shouldn’t be too far of a reach for Robinson. As a 21-year-old, he has a chance to take the reigns of a Knicks team that is looking for a true locker room leader. When you look at all of the other young talent on this Knicks team, I can’t think of anyone else that would be more suited to take charge and become a vocal leader on and off the floor.

If you have a pair of eyes, you can see how much dedication Robinson puts towards improving his craft. Throughout his rookie season alone, Mitch improved so much on both ends, and he’s only going to get better. His work ethic and passion during practices and games can quickly start to rub off on the other guys and make them better players for it. After all, a lot of New York’s offense is going to run through Robinson since he’s such an essential part of it.

Head Coach, David Fizdale historically thrives from his players making constant movement on and off the ball. This will be big for Robinson as it means he’ll continuously be involved with the Pick and Roll. With most of New York’s guards being extremely athletic or decent shooters, the focus can now be on multiple players instead of just the young Knick Center. His play will be a significant factor in how much of a leader he becomes but I don’t think he’ll have a problem with that once he hits the floor this season.

Average a double-double

Based on the ordinary development of any player, this should be a walk in the park for Robinson. The only reason why one could argue him not averaging a double-double last year was because of his lack of playing time. In the 66 games, he hit the hardwood, he only started 19 of them and played 20.6 Minutes Per Game. My favorite stat to look at with any player is the Per 36 Minutes stat and for Robinson, staring at that stat makes you optimistic as a Knicks fan that he’ll be able to achieve a double-double.

Per 36 Minutes a Game last season, Robinson averaged 12.8 Points, 11.2 Rebounds, and 4.3 Blocks Per Game. I don’t know about you, but those stats can undoubtedly indicate a promising sign of things to come with increased minutes. Fizdale knows that Robinson is going to be one of his main guys, and with his offensive game slowly starting to develop; it’ll be a crime if he won’t be able to put up at least 12 and ten next year. For the team’s sake, his production can make them contenders within the next few years. For his own purpose, he could wind up making the All-Star team with some improved output.

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