Knicks 105, Pistons 91: Mitchell Robinson leads the way with explosive performance in win

mitchell robinson, knicks

After dropping a disappointing game to the Boston Celtics over the weekend, the New York Knicks bounced back with a dominant win over the Detroit Pistons, the worst team in the NBA. Having won just five games this year, the Knicks completely outmatched Detroit despite playing without Obi Toppin, Quentin Grimes, Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, and Miles McBride.

Toppin will be allowed to return after his symptoms subside, and Barrett will clear the 10-day quarantine requirement on Wednesday. The Knicks are slowly getting healthier and scratching their way out of Covid protocols, but they still have quite some time until some of their more prominent youngsters return to the squad.

However, gathering a bit of momentum against Detroit was exactly what the team needed after dropping eight of their last 10 games prior to the win.

In the victory, it was center Mitchell Robinson who stepped up to the plate and provided a dominant performance. With 17 points, tying his season-high from the Houston Rockets game just a few days ago, he also recorded 14 rebounds, six of which were offensive. His +24 +/- was the best on the team, displaying awesome energy with fantastic defensive prowess.

Detroit simply didn’t have the size to match up against Robinson in the paint, who arguably had his best game of the season. The starters also performed well, with Julius Randle contributing 21 points, Kemba Walker logging 21, and Evan Fournier posting 22. Walker backed up his come-back outing against the Boston Celtics, scoring 29 points, with another adequate performance on Tuesday night.

With Quickley, Grimes, and McBride all out for at least another week, we should expect to see plenty more of Walker in the coming days, despite his frustration over being benched originally. Walker and Tom Thibodeau didn’t speak once during the nine-game stretch where the veteran point guard was exiled to the bench.

Fortunately, his comeback has sparked the Knicks’ offense, but their defense has still struggled at times. As a team, the Knicks shot just 33.3% from three-point range but held Detroit to 24.2%, showcasing solid perimeter defense against a lackluster team.

The Knicks will look ahead to the Washington Wizards on Thursday night at 7:30 PM, a far more formidable opponent.