The New York Knicks will be without Josh Hart and Mitchell Robinson when they open the 2025-26 season Wednesday night against the Cavaliers, per ESPN’s Shams Charania, and on Wednesday afternoon more unfortunate injury news broke when Shams brought word Karl-Anthony Towns was doubtful to play with a quad strain.
It’s a significant blow to the Knicks as they embark on a season that comes with incredibly high expectations after a run to the Eastern Conference finals a year ago. Towns’ potential absence is the most concerning, as the Knicks built up their depth this offseason but do not have anyone capable of filling the role their All-Star big man takes on offensively. Starting the season with a quad strain is never ideal, as soft tissue injuries can linger throughout the year, but the hope in New York is that Towns will be able to fully recover soon and not have any long-term impact from this issue.
The status of Hart, though, doesn’t come as a surprise. Hart has been dealing with a back injury ever since he took a rough fall during New York’s preseason game against the 76ers. He hasn’t suited up since that game and is being listed out with “lumbar spasms.” Knicks coach Mike Brown spoke of Hart’s status moving forward after practice Tuesday.
“We’re trying to figure out his back, which is a tricky situation,” Brown said. “We have to be careful with it, we don’t want to rush him. We’ll be patient and figure it out as we go along. [Knicks head trainer Casey Smith] does a great job, and we believe in them so we’re going to follow their plan.”
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With Robinson, he’s being sidelined with left ankle injury management, per the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. Mitchell missing the season opener is more for a load management perspective, as he did play in three of the Knicks’ five preseason matchups. Neither of Hart or Robinson practiced Tuesday.
“Really it’s load management, which means that if we deemed it necessary, could he possibly go, yeah,” Brown said of Robinson’s status. “But it’s a decision that myself, led by [Casey Smith] whose in charge of performance on a daily basis. It will be like this the whole year.”
So from the sounds of it, the Knicks’ plan with Robinson is to be cautious with his workload all season in hopes of having him healthy for the playoffs. It’s a smart strategy, given he’s played in just 107 games over the last three seasons due to various injuries. The left ankle “injury management” he’s dealing with right now is the same one he had surgically repaired two years ago which limited him to just 31 games.
While it’s a smart plan to load manage Robinson, it is still a bit concerning that he’s still dealing with ankle issues two years removed from the surgery. His injury history has always prevented him from establishing any sort of consistency with the Knicks. When he’s healthy, he’s a solid rim protector and pick-and-roll partner for the likes of Jalen Brunson, but his health has never been something the Knicks could count on. It’s why Robinson’s pending free agency next summer will be tricky to predict, and now that he’ll be load managed all season long, it will surely question how much the Knicks want to invest in him moving forward if injuries will always be a concern for him.
In regard to Hart, he’s also dealing with a finger injury that he’ll need to wear a splint for the entire season after having surgery on it this summer. His production will be sorely missed on the defensive end as a do-it-all hustle player for the Knicks. Depending on how much time both players miss, this certainly isn’t how the Knicks wanted to start the season. They could be playing it cautious with both guys, but if Robinson’s injury is something more serious, that’s a massive red flag for New York. If he misses significant time, they’ll once again be shorthanded in the frontcourt without a quality rim protector and interior defender to help Karl-Anthony Towns.