Knicks' Mitchell Robinson Ruled out vs. 76ers with Knee Injury

The New York Knicks announced center Mitchell Robinson suffered a knee injury and was ruled out for the remainder of his team's road game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night.

Robinson was seen limping to the locker room alongside training staff with 3:25 remaining in the first half. He started and played 12 minutes before exiting.

The big man entered Friday averaging 7.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game for the Knicks this season.

The 24-year-old appeared in 72 games (62 starts) for the Knicks last year, averaging 8.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, shooting 76.1 percent from the field.

It was a so-so year for Robinson in a disappointing season overall for New York. With Robinson on the floor, the team had a net rating of just -2.1, per NBA.com, while its net rating when he sat improved to 1.3. It wasn't the sort of impact the team would be hoping for from its young center.

However, it mirrored the Knicks in general. Julius Randle reverted back to his career averages, or close to them, after his superb 2020-21 season. Derrick Rose missed a large chunk of the campaign, and the team's lack of true point guards behind him showed.

New York's excellent defense from the 2020-21 campaign also regressed.

So Mitchell's ho-hum season was pretty far down the list of the team's issues. Some of those deficiencies were addressed in the offseason, such as Jalen Brunson being signed to run the point. But the fact that Robinson didn't take a bigger step forward in Year 4 is nonetheless worth monitoring.

The Knicks showed confidence in him, however, signing him to a four-year, $60 million deal in the offseason.

As for who will replace him if he's forced to miss time, expect Isaiah Hartenstein to see the majority of the minutes at center.

Hartenstein, who joined the Knicks via free agency from the Los Angeles Clippers last offseason, started the second half in place of Robinson on Friday. He's averaged 8.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.4 blocks for the Knicks thus far.