SAN ANTONIO — Tuesday brought optimism and a bit more clarity surrounding Mitchell Robinson and his broken right pinky.
Though it is still unclear how exactly Robinson suffered the injury, which The Post’s Stefan Bondy first reported is a fracture of the fifth metacarpal, ESPN reported on Tuesday that it occurred at his home. The Knicks had only previously said that he had surgery and that the injury did not occur in a game or practice.
He is officially listed as questionable for Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night at the Frost Bank Center. The Knicks maintain hope that he will be able to play.
During the portion of practice open to the media on Tuesday, Robinson wore a small black wrap on his right hand and participated in drills. He caught and made passes cleanly and took shots without an obvious sign of discomfort.
He did not dunk the ball with full force, however, instead gently placing it in the rim.
Robinson was not made available to the media to answer questions about how he sustained the injury and his readiness for Game 1.
Coach Mike Brown said before practice that he was waiting for the medical staff to update him about Robinson’s status, the same message he had after the Knicks’ three previous practices on Friday, Sunday and Monday.
Robinson’s availability could be pivotal — he matched up with Victor Wembanyama more than any other Knicks defender when the Knicks beat the Spurs in the NBA Cup final.
And the Knicks are thin at center outside of Karl-Anthony Towns and Robinson.
If Robinson cannot play or is ineffective, it would likely mean more minutes for third-string center Ariel Hukporti.
“I’m always prepared,” Hukporti said on Tuesday. “I’m always ready. … When you’re in the third unit, you never know. People have foul trouble, stuff happens on the court.”
That sentiment is nice. But the Knicks would certainly like to avoid it becoming reality.