Mitchell Robinson has been spreading scary warnings on social media. Despite being sidelined with a left ankle injury, the New York Knicks centre remains active off the court.
Robinson was injured in Game 3 against the Philadelphia 76ers when Joel Embiid landed on his left ankle during the second quarter. He missed Game 4 and appears unlikely to play Game 5.
Meanwhile, he remains active on social media, releasing an explicit, foreboding message on his Snapchat account on April 29.
“(Expletive) around and find out,” wrote the longest-serving Knick.
It’s not obvious who Robinson is referring to, if anyone. In the past, he has used social media to express dissatisfaction with the squad or respond to criticism at difficult times.
Robinson has yet to comment on his recent encounter with Embiid, which has sparked controversy. It’s also plausible he’s referring to the current MVP.
Embiid is accused of playing dirty against the Knicks.
Embiid’s foul on Robinson was called a Flagrant One, not a Flagrant Two, which would have resulted in ejection from the game.
Knicks guard Donte DiVincenzo spoke openly about the contentious play after the game on April 25.
“It was dirty,” DiVincenzo told Stefon Bondy of the New York Post. “It was dirty.”
Robinson staggered through the rest of the first half before being out for the second.
In postgame interviews with Bondy and media, Josh Hart did not take a direct aim at Embiid like DiVincenzo. However, he acknowledged the play’s irresponsibility.
“We’re just glad Mitch wasn’t seriously injured,” Hart told Bondy. “I’m all for difficult fouls, especially playoff fouls, but it may put a guy out for an extended period of time. So we’re lucky he wasn’t gravely injured during that time.”
After the game, Isaiah Hartenstein told SNY that Embiid’s Flagrant 1 play was inappropriate on the basketball floor.
“It’s not a basketball play,” Hartenstein told reporters.
Robinson was gone for 50 regular-season games before returning to play 10 of New York’s final 11 games in 2023-24.
He’s listed as questionable for Game 5 with a left ankle injury.
With a 3-1 lead over the 76ers and the game on their own court, the Knicks are unlikely to force Robinson to play if he isn’t ready.
The odds favour New York.
3–1 leads are among the safest in sports.
Land of Basketball reports that only 13 out of 281 NBA playoff teams have fallen after taking a 3-1 lead.
The Denver Nuggets were the last team to do it in the first round, winning their series against the Utah Jazz.
According to Land of Basketball, 168 of the series ended in five games, 78 in six, and only 22 went to seven.
Game 5 will be played at Madison Square Garden, where the New York Knicks had a 27-14 regular season record and a 2-0 series record against the Philadelphia 76ers.
With Jalen Brunson’s performance, it’s hard to find a cautiously optimistic 76ers supporter heading into Game 5.
