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Report: Knicks' Mitchell Robinson Out for Team USA Scrimmage with Knee Injury
August 10, 2019
Mitchell Robinson won't participate in Team USA's intrasquad scrimmage Friday night, according to SNY's Ian Begley, "as a precautionary measure due to a knee ailment."
The New York Knicks center was set to play against the senior men's national team roster for the White team, which is comprised of rising players on the USA Basketball select team. The senior squad is preparing for the FIBA World Cup, which begins Aug. 31 in China.
The matchup will tip at 10 p.m. ET from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The Team USA training camp began in Las Vegas on Monday.
On Thursday, Marc Berman of the New York Post reported Robinson's knee injury:
"According to a Team USA source, Robinson suffered a knee injury and missed the first two days of practice, beginning with an informal workout Sunday. He returned for two days, but re-injured the knee Wednesday.
"Robinson was expected to miss Thursday's set of scrimmages and practice. A member of the Knicks training staff is in Vegas with Robinson. According to a source close to Robinson, he's been experiencing 'just soreness,' and the team and his camp are being extra cautious after an MRI turned up clean."
When the 7'1", 240-pound 21-year-old played, he impressed:
Robinson was named to the 2018-19 NBA All-Rookie second team after averaging 7.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks across 66 games (19 starts).
Fellow All-Rookie honoree Trae Young—also playing with the select team—exited Team USA camp Thursday with a minor eye infection, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst.
Several stars opted not to participate with Team USA this summer with their eyes toward a wide-open NBA after a busy offseason across the league. The Portland Trail Blazers' CJ McCollum explained why on The Woj Pod with Adrian Wojnarowski:
While Robinson won't play in the World Cup, he and the Knicks still need to be cautious. Kristaps Porzingis is gone from New York, and free agency did not pan out the way the Knicks had hoped, so the last thing the franchise needs is for a crucial building block to tumble in a meaningless scrimmage.