Karl-Anthony Towns is not going to pretend he loves seeing Mitchell Robinson in Boston Celtics green.
In a recent sit-down with The New York Times’ The Interview, the Knicks star opened up about his former teammate leaving New York on a 3-year, $47.4 million deal to sign with an Atlantic Division rival. His answer was pure Towns.
“I don’t even know if I could look at Mitch with a Celtics jersey on after everything, so I’ll just have to start laughing at Mitch when we see each other,” Towns said. “He owes me a pickup truck.”
The truck line is going to travel. Whatever the inside joke is, the punchline lands.
Robinson spent his first eight NBA seasons with the Knicks. He was drafted in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft, developed into one of the best rim protectors in the league when healthy, and served as the primary backup and safety valve behind Towns after New York’s blockbuster trade for the big man in 2024. He was also, by every account, a locker room favorite.
Losing him hurts the Knicks in a very specific way. Robinson was the kind of insurance policy every team wishes it had: a starter-caliber center on a role player contract who could keep the rim protected whenever Towns needed a break. New York’s defense was noticeably worse when both guys sat.
The Knicks pivoted quickly and signed veteran Andre Drummond to a 1-year, $3.9 million deal to soak up the backup center minutes. Drummond is not the same defensive weapon Robinson is at his peak, but he is a big body who rebounds and can survive stretches in the paint. Given the price, it is a solid backfill.
The bigger issue is what Robinson brings to Boston. The Celtics have quietly rebuilt their frontcourt depth around a defensive identity again after tearing down the 2024 championship core. Robinson at the five with Payton Pritchard and Jaylen Brown around him is a legitimately annoying group to score on. If he stays healthy, he immediately raises the Celtics’ postseason ceiling.
Health is always the catch. Robinson has averaged only 44 games per season over the last four years. He has never made it through a full 82. That is why he was gettable at that price and why the Knicks were willing to let it happen.
Towns is right to be salty about it. Robinson is not just a good NBA center, he was his guy. And now that guy is on the team the Knicks have to go through to defend last month’s title.
The truck joke can wait. The next time these two share the floor, it is going to feel very different.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
