The Spurs rolled out a new defensive strategy focused on sending Knicks' Mitchell Robinson to the free-throw line. Will this mindset pay off for San Antonio?
The San Antonio Spurs dropped the opening game of the NBA Finals to the New York Knicks at home after a furious offensive rally from the visitors. Following the loss, San Antonio showcased a new defensive strategy in Game 2, which has ties to a legendary former player.
Knicks center Mitchell Robinson was sent to the free-throw line three times early on the pivotal matchup in hopes to stifle their scoring. Robinson is woefully poor at knocking down free throws and the Spurs fully aware of this fact opted to force him to make these shots to keep New York the the matchup.
Robinson posted a 3-for-6 mark in his three trips to the charity stripe, leaving the effectiveness of this plan up in the air for San Antonio. Speaking of 50 percent, that is the percentage that the big man boasts for his career.
In the postseason, Robinson is under that threshold at 36.2 percent through 49 games played ahead of Friday's second game of the Finals. Needless to say, that is less than ideal for New York when he makes his way to the line.
If this concept sounds familiar, it may be because it bears a shocking resemblance to the "Hack-a-Shaq" mentality that circulated the NBA during the tenure of one of the league's most dominant forces.
Robinson is not Shaquille O'Neal, no disrespect toward him but facts are facts. O'Neal was the primary scoring threat on most of, if not all, the teams he was a part of, so sending him away from the paint and onto the line proved to an effective method for squads looking to eliminate his game-changing nature.
For Robinson, it is more about isolating the worst free-throw shooter and preventing other threats on New York from getting chances. However, the pair share a striking similarity when it comes to their abilities to convert at the stripe and for San Antonio that is all that matters in this series.
Despite their newfound way to attempt to slow down a Knicks team that is hot on a historic level, the Spurs went on to drop Game 2 in a 105-104 heartbreaker that saw them almost literally throw the game away late.
Following the victory for New York, Robinson shared his thoughts on the Spurs targeting him.
"So, in my eyes, I feel like I'm threat. So it's kind of how it is," remarked Robinson.
As previously stated, that is not entirely the case but with the performance he had defensively on Victor Wembanyama and not completely tanking in the face of the strategy, Robinson can brag for at least one game.
Although the result was not what the Spurs had hoped for, it does not mean that the "Hack-a-Mitch" mindset will be retired by the team moving forward. Expect San Antonio to keep forcing Robinson to step up for Knicks, as the Spurs are in survival mode down 0-2.
San Antonio heads to the Big Apple for the next two games aiming to even things up inside Madison Square Garden. Game 3 between the Knicks and Spurs tips off at 7:30 p.m.
