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The New York Knicks built their championship roster to counter the Boston Celtics. Now that they’ve won a title, the Knicks’ Atlantic Division rivals are poaching one of their most valuable reserves.

Backup center Mitchell Robinson agreed with the Celtics for a reported $47.4M over three years, a deal that included a player option. The deal gives Boston one of the best offensive rebounders in the NBA and gives Robinson a windfall that looked unlikely one year ago.

Mitchell Robinson proved his worth in the playoffs

There’s been no question about Robinson’s talent during his eight-year career with the Knicks. There have been big questions about his ability to stay on the court. The seven-footer led the league in offensive rebounds in 2022-23 and helped the Knicks to a first-round upset, only to break his ankle early in 2023-24, an ailment that limited him to 48 games in the next two seasons.

This year, Robinson played 60 games and all but one of the Knicks’ 19 playoff games, which he missed due to illness. He played the NBA Finals with a broken bone in his hand, collecting 10 rebounds in the Knicks’ series-clinching Game 5 win.

That was enough to convince the Celtics to give Robinson a raise and a three-year deal. Robinson isn’t exactly the stretch five type that the Celtics had with Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis in recent years, but he’s an incredible offensive rebounder and provides a paint presence on defense that wasn’t there with Neemias Queta and Luka Garza.

Mitchell Robinson’s injuries didn’t concern Celtics

While Robinson has missed a lot of games in recent seasons, it’s really only the broken ankle that’s been a long-term problem. He’s missed extended time in the past with a broken hand and a sprained thumb, but those were due to Robinson getting hit, not some chronic weakness in his bones.

The Celtics may well want to manage Robinson’s minutes to keep him fresh, simply because he’s a 28-year-old center who plays very physically. However, in the modern NBA, getting 19.6 minutes and 60 games out of a center with stellar advanced statistics (Robinson’s box-score plus/minus was an excellent 3.5 points above average) is excellent.

Robinson’s ability to block shots, get boards and play through injuries got the Knicks a championship. Now it has also got him paid.