The New York Knicks have been pressured by an NBA insider to switch up their starting lineup this season.
Last year, New York enjoyed its best season in a quarter century, advancing all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals with a roster anchored by All-NBA standouts Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.
But it wasn't enough for the front office to retain 2021 Coach of the Year Tom Thibodeau, who was cut loose following the Knicks' six-game ECF defeat to the Indiana Pacers.
A new-look New York
Thibodeau has often come under fire for overplaying starters and exhibiting a certain inflexibility when it comes to his offensive schemes and rotations.
Still, in the playoffs he was happy to mix and match his first five, often swapping in center Mitchell Robinson for shooting guard Josh Hart to kick off games.
New York retooled over the summer, hiring 2023 Coach of the Year Mike Brown and signing free agents Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson.
In a fresh episode of his podcast "The Zach Lowe Show," The Ringer's Zach Lowe suggested that New York under Brown could upgrade Robinson to a permanent starting role.
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"They have a new coach, and so that's the tell that someone in the organization — unless this was just James Dolan being crazy — looked at what was going on in the court and said, 'Not enough bench, not enough variety, not enough juice, not enough smart usage of KAT,' whatever it is," Lowe said. "And this year the wildcard coming into the season is, Mitchell Robinson's starting the season healthy."
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Robinson is an excellent rim-running and -protecting big, but he's brutally injury-prone. The 27-year-old has only been healthy for an average of 24 games across the past two seasons.
The 7-footer starting would shift Towns and All-Defensive forwards OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges down a position, allowing for a versatile, jumbo-sized lineup around Brunson.
"And that, right off the bat, gives the new coach a different lever to pull," Lowe added. "I think there's some chance that the Knicks are going to start Mitchell Robinson, maybe, probably at the expense of Josh Hart."
This is a bold take. To presume Robinson can play starter's minutes when no such evidence exists and he is critically important to the team is inherently risky. Why not play Robinson as if he's a typical 35-year-old veteran? He can be sat for one night of all back-to-back sets of games, while playing 20-ish minutes per.
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