Robinson still ‘a work in progress’
Center Mitchell Robinson is not expected to be ready to go full tilt when the Knicks hold their first training-camp practice Tuesday.
In breaking a 14-month media silence Friday, team president Leon Rose said Robinson’s return to full duty is still “a work in progress.”
Robinson, who played just 31 games because of a broken hand and broken foot last season, has yet to be cleared for full contact. The Post reported last week he wasn’t scrimmaging during voluntary workouts.
The 23-year-old will be an unrestricted free agent in 2022, but is up for a contract extension. It didn’t sound as if anything will be happening on that front soon.
“As far as a contract goes, we love Mitchell Robinson and we look forward to seeing him play,’’ Rose said.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau confirmed Robinson will take it slowly. He had foot surgery in late March. Foot issues with big men are considered larger concerns than for guards.
The Knicks re-signed centers Nerlens Noel and Taj Gibson in consideration of Robinson’s injury history.
“I thought last year, [Robinson] was really starting to take off when he got hurt,’’ Thibodeau said. “And then he had the setback. And this summer, he’s put in a lot of time. He hasn’t been able to play. He’s put a lot of time into conditioning, strength and conditioning and whatever he’s allowed to do — being in the pool, weight training, form shooting, watching a lot of film.”
Whether Mitchell will play in any of the four preseason games is unclear.
“We’re following what our medical people are saying,’’ Thibodeau said. “There’s a plan in place. And we’re not going to rush, we’re going to take it step by step. That was the great value in having Nerlens and Taj. So we love the depth at that position. But we like where Mitch and the way he’s grown, professionally. We’re excited about the season, we’ll see how it unfolds but we’re not going to rush, we’re going step by step. He’s big part of what we’re doing.’’
One NBA source said the Knicks have received good medical reports on Robinson, but want him to be cautious in preseason.
A 2018 second-round pick, Robinson is finishing the final $1.8 million year of his four-year pact. The Post reported the Knicks are willing to offer Robinson a contract extension, but not “anything crazy.’’ That figures to be below the recent fouryear, $48 million guaranteed money in an extension given Celtics injury-prone center Robert Williams.