Knicks stand together after Mitchell Robinson injury

The Knicks had reason to be angry with the refereeing at the end of Game 3 which saw Philadelphia return to 2-1, led by a Joel Embiid at 50 points. Particularly following two controversial gestures from the Sixers pivot. There was contact with the private parts ofIsaiah Hartenstein and above all a clash with Mitchell Robinson who could have sent him back to the locker room. Above all, New York for its part had to continue without Mitchell Robinson, who woke up from his sprained left ankle.

As Game 4 approaches, the time has come for sacred union among Tom Thibodeau's troops, even if the pill is still having difficulty passing, and the resentment against the referees is tenacious.

“I'm not a journalist, but if I was, I'd write something. But it's like that. I said what I said last time. This happened. We are preparing for the next match. I think about regularity. Watch this action, and watch Josh Hart's action in Chicago. It's my point of view. But that's in the past. We just have to be ready. The first job of the referees is to control and manage the match. So when these kinds of things happen, it's their job. But physical basketball doesn't bother us.”, commented the New York coach.

The Coué method?

Frustration could grow on the Knicks side as we do not yet know if Mitchell Robinson will be able to hold his place this evening. For his part, Donte DiVincenzo cannot imagine that his position 5 is not present, even if it means gritting his teeth to be able to hold his place. In war as in war, where a certain idea of ​​the Coué method to convince oneself that a last minute return is still possible.

“That’s not our mindset,” the rear repeated. “It's unfortunate that he got injured, but he's doing everything possible and everyone expects him to be able to play, that's our mindset. Our vision is that we don’t feel bad for him, because we don’t think he’s on the sidelines, and neither is he.”

On the side of Jalen Brunson and his coach, Tom Thibodeau, we analyze the situation with a little more lucidity, already preparing for how the group could react if Mitchell Robinson were to miss Game 4, see Game 5 for the return of the series to Madison Square Garden.

“Of course, we want everyone to be healthy. The fact that he's fighting to come back and seeing his injury come back is of course sad. But I think the most important thing in all of this is to look ahead. How can we stick together? We can't feel sorry for ourselves no matter what happens, because no one is going to care. How will we respond? »slipped Jalen Brunson into the perfect leader.

To replace Isaiah Hartenstein at position 5, Precious Achiuwa and Jericho Sims could be called upon if Mitchell Robinson were to be missing.

After missing the first two matches, the Nigerian played ten minutes in Game 3. Jericho Sims, for his part, has not yet entered the game since the start of the playoffs.

“You just have to be ready. We need everyone to be on the same wavelength, and it's up to us to do that on 48 minutes.”concluded Tom Thibodeau. “That's something that's been great about our team all year long. Every time a player got injured, another arrived. Precious and Jericho played well for us (…). We are a team, we need everyone.”

How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.