Mitchell Robinson has looked every bit the part as a game-changer for the Boston Celtics. It may have only been two preseason games, but Robinson has shown dominant rebounding and presence as a lob threat. Yes, he has his flaws, but he fits Joe Mazzulla's philosophy to a T.
Funny enough, though, Robinson's free-throw shooting and his unavailability have shown themselves, but obviously not to the point where it's a problem for Boston, at least not yet. However, one of Robinson's flaws did not surface whatsoever in his two preseason games for the Celtics: his tendency to get in foul trouble.
For his career, Robinson has averaged 2.7 personal fouls a game while averaging 23.4 minutes per game. That's a pretty high rate, knowing he'd be very close to six fouls a game if he played all 48 minutes. It's why New York relegated him to more of a backup, as they couldn't consistently depend on him (or his injuries, for that matter).
But that wasn't the case for Boston. It's preseason, but it is an encouraging sign that in 30 minutes of playing time, Robinson never had one foul. Making it even more impressive is that he started both of those games. Boston even rolled out a surprisingly effective two-man lineup with Robinson and Neemias Queta.
Obviously, 30 minutes over the course of two preseason games is as short of a sample size as it gets, but it maybe is an encouraging sign that Robinson's foul-prone days might not be as bad as it used to be.
The more Robinson, the better
This is nothing against Queta or Luka Garza, but Robinson not only gives the Celtics an NBA Champion (something they kind of already have), but also changes so much on the floor. He's a two-way big whose rebounding goes both ways.
Not only that, but he forces turnovers and can't be hunted on switches when put on small guards. It's not like Boston is going to depend on him for 30 or more minutes a game (that's the beauty of having Queta and Garza) but it's pretty clear from the process of how they've won their preseason games that Robinson will have a lot to do with that.
But who knows? Maybe this was an aberration and Robinson's foul-prone tendencies will very much be there when the season starts. That's the more likely scenario, but if that's not what happens, Boston could get even more bang for their buck than they already anticipate they will.
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