Mitchell Robinson calls out Knicks after streak snaps in Charlotte

New York Knicks fans hope Mitch’s pitch proves to be the turning point of a potentially lucrative playoff run.

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson was among the many frustrated by the team’s Thursday showing, a 114-103 defeat to the Charlotte Hornets that ended a seven-game winning streak.

Robinson perhaps put up the most emphatic statement of the night in the comment section of Instagram after the game: commentator KnicksFanTV tried to glean a positive from Thursday’s game by highlighting Robinson’s in-game mentoring of young center Ariel Hukporti but the longest-tenured Knick opted to spin the focus on the hope that the visit to Charlotte is a much-needed wake-up call.

“Don’t even matter unless we change our approach,” Robinson commented. “We ain’t doing s*** special keep that bull**** up myself included.”

It’s no wonder why Robinson is taking things personally: as the longest-tenured Knick at eight seasons, Robinson is getting ready to partake in what likely stands as the franchise’s most hopeful playoff trip in quite some time. New York broke its long-standing conference finals appearance drought last season but even a return trip might feel fruitless at this rate.

Though the Knicks (48-26) have handled business fairly well against winning teams this season (26-20 entering Friday play), Thursday’s loss will no doubt fuel anti-metropolitan narratives with the postseason looming.

The surging Hornets, whose recent success could land them into a first round series against the Knicks, sank 16 three-pointers and shot 53 percent from the field while building a lead that reached as high as 21.

In Robinson’s department, Charlotte outrebounded the Knicks by 19, the worst such margin New York has endured all season. He was granted late minutes down the stretch in favor of starter Karl-Anthony Towns but the Knicks only shrank the lead to less than 10 in the penultimate minute.

New York entered Thursday’s game with the longest active winning streak in the Eastern Conference but that tally came against eliminated clubs like Brooklyn, Indiana, and Washington. The Knicks haven’t defeated a team with a winning record in three weeks, when they laid down a 39-point shellacking upon the Denver Nuggets in the Rockies.

An instant opportunity to play up to Robinson’s standard lands on Sunday night as the Knicks continue a four-game road trip against league-leading Oklahoma City (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC).