The New York Knicks were dealt a blow in their Game 3 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers when center Mitchell Robinson was forced out of the action early with an ankle injury. And while there was hope that Robinson would be able to get back on the court in time for Game 4, he has ultimately been ruled out for the game, despite warming up with the intention of playing in the contest.

There initially seemed to be some optimism that Robinson would play, as he was warming up with the team despite the fact that his ankle was pretty heavily wrapped. Despite that seemingly being a good sign, it was determined that Robinson was not good enough to go, and he will now be forced to watch this crucial Game 4 contest on the sidelines.

With Robinson out, the Knicks are now going to lean on Isaiah Hartenstein to hold down the center position in his absence. Hartenstein is going to have a tough task on his hands to say the least considering he will have to go up against Joel Embiid, who just dropped 50 points on New York in Game 3. If Hartenstein and company struggle to defend Embiid again, they could find themselves in trouble.

Mitchell Robinson's impact for Knicks hard to miss

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) shoots the ball as New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) defends during the first half during game two of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Madison Square Garden.
Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Robinson's numbers aren't huge through the first three games this series (3.7 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 0.7 APG, 50 FG%), but he's played a crucial role in protecting the paint for New York on defense. While Embiid was already hot before his absence, it's telling that he managed to score 50 points in a game where Robinson played just under 12 minutes of action.

When Robinson has been on the floor this series, the Knicks have dominated the Sixers. Again, it may not seem like it with those aforementioned numbers, but Robinson has posted a plus-minus of +29 so far, indicating that his presence in the paint is causing Philadelphia's offense problems.

Via Tommy Beer:

“The Knicks have outscored the Sixers by 29 points in the 60 minutes Mitchell Robinson has played in this series. At +29, Robinson has the second-best plus/minus on the team (highest among Knicks who have logged more than 50 minutes).”

Now that he's out, the Knicks are going to have to find a way to slow down Embiid and company without their best interior defender on the floor. They were unable to do that in Game 3, and it resulted in Philadelphia winning their first game of the series. Now, they have a great shot to knot the series at two wins apiece with tipoff for Game 4 right around the corner. This is a less than ideal situation for New York, but all they can do is hope that holding out Robinson for this game can help him get back on the court for Game 5.