When Atlanta Hawks fans think about the team's first-round playoff series against the Knicks, the player they're probably most scared of taking over and dominating is Jalen Brunson. He's a proven playoff performer who comes up in the clutch, but the Hawks' wings can slow him down a bit. The player they may not be able to stop will come off the bench — Mitchell Robinson.
He was a thorn in the Celtics' side during the second-round series last year, to the point where Joe Mazzulla deployed the "Hack-A-Mitch" strategy, with the logic being that sending the career 50.8% free-throw shooter to the line after he was a +13 in Game 1 and +19 in Game 2 would help take him out of the game.
It worked to an extent, as he was -3 in Game 3, but he still had six offensive rebounds (eight total), his most in a game that series. His overall highest was the 13 total rebounds he had in Game 5.
Robinson averaged eight rebounds per game in the semifinals against Boston in 20.6 minutes, with 3.8 of those coming on the offensive glass.
Hawks tasked with finding a way to limit Mitchell Robinson
The backup center is a monster on the offensive boards, averaging 4.2 per game this season, second in the league behind Donovan Clingan (4.5) for players who played at least 60 games. Robinson played in 17 fewer regular-season games than Clingan, who played 77, and Mitch averaged fewer minutes per game (19.6) than the Trail Blazers' center (27.2).
In other words, Robinson's bench role doesn't minimize his impact. It's not just about his rebounding, either, as he's a great rim protector. New York has managed his playing time all season so that he'd be as close to his best as possible when it matters most.
With Jock Landale out, Atlanta is at even more of a disadvantage when it comes to trying to counter the big man, something that the Hawks hope Onyeka Okongwu has a shot at doing. He'll have to expend most of his energy against Karl-Anthony Towns, though, which could ultimately pave the way for Robinson even more. Hopefully, Mo Gueye will have something to say about that.
For the Hawks to upset the Knicks and win the series, containing New York's big men will be key. KAT could be enough of a headache as is, without considering the annoyance Robinson could become.
Let's see if Okongwu and Gueye will be up to the task of not making the Knicks duo become the storyline they already are.
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