Have Knicks Done Enough at Center?

The New York Knicks will have a “new” starting center in the upcoming season as Mitchell Robinson reclaims his spot after Isaiah Hartenstein took over for most of last season.

Hartenstein entered the starting lineup midway through the year when Robinson injured his ankle, and that led to the former second-round pick playing the best basketball of his career.

Hartenstein’s breakout season prompted the Oklahoma City Thunder to offer him a three-year, $87 million deal, which was way out of the Knicks’ price range. Hartenstein wanted to return to New York, but the Knicks could only offer him a four-year deal worth $72.5 million. Hartenstein couldn’t turn down the massive raise the Thunder were offering.

With Hartenstein out the door, the Knicks didn’t add a new piece to replace him, which has earned criticism from Bleacher Report writer Grant Hughes.

“It would have been easy enough to specifically cite the loss of Isaiah Hartenstein here, but the Knicks simply couldn’t pay him what the Oklahoma City Thunder could. New York is not at fault for failing to keep him,” Hughes writes. “That said, the Knicks could have tinkered a little more over the summer to add some reliable depth behind oft-injured starter Mitchell Robinson. He’s currently the only rotation-worthy conventional center on the team.”

The Knicks are hopeful that Robinson can step right back into his role as the starting center and that Precious Achiuwa and Jericho Sims can fill in as backups. Maybe there are lineups where Marcus Morris, Julius Randle or OG Anunoby could be a small-ball center, but the Knicks clearly still have a need for a big man.

The Knicks will monitor the situation for the first half of the season, because they might be able to swim for a few months with the crew that they have. It may not be good enough for a postseason rotation, but that’s what the trade deadline is for.

Perhaps someone like Jonas Valanciunas from the Washington Wizards or Isaiah Stewart from the Detroit Pistons becomes available to help the Knicks, but for now, New York has to be content with what it currently has.

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