Mitchell Robinson is giving the Knicks their identity back, and it's causing major problems for the Celtics

New York is dominating Robinson's minutes against Boston

The 2023-24 New York Knicks were the stereotype of a Tom Thibodeau team. Strong defense driven by stellar rim-protection. Cartoonish offensive rebounding numbers. They played harder than everyone else. Their role players outperformed their perceived talent. The whole was unquestionably better than the sum of its parts. This is what we think of when we think of a Thibodeau team. It's not really what the 2024-25 Knicks were allowed to be.

That's not entirely their fault. The CBA deprived them of Isaiah Hartenstein. An injury cost them Mitchell Robinson for most of the year. They needed a center and they got one in Karl-Anthony Towns that fundamentally changed almost everything about them. On paper, at least, this was meant to be a five-out, offense-first team. The whole was weakened, so the Knicks responded in the best way that was reasonably available to them at the time: they increased the sum of the parts by adding raw talent.

The Knicks were better on paper with Towns and Mikal Bridges in the fold. Yet they won only one more game, and their net rating declined. The Knicks allowed the sixth-fewest points in the paint last year and fell to 20th this year. Their rebounding rate fell from No. 1 to No. 9. Pick a hustle stat tracked by NBA.com -- loose balls recovered, charges drawn, screen assists, box outs -- and there is a small but meaningful decline.