The New York Knicks are flailing for some foothold in their Conference Finals series against the Pacers, and they desperately need to change something if they want to win. For head coach Tom Thibodeau, that change came in the form of a tweak to the starting lineup. After two shocking losses, Josh Hart has been moved to the bench in favor of Mitchell Robinson, and Charles Barkley doesn’t seem too pleased with the idea.
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When Ernie Johnson informed the Inside panel about this lineup change, Charles was the first to make his opinion known. Barkley insisted that, at 2-0 down and going away to Indiana for such a crucial game, the Knicks shouldn’t experiment with their lineup, as it’s likely to do more harm than good.
Mitchell Robinson will start for the Knicks tonight https://t.co/AKThFz79BD pic.twitter.com/j25Ecn1esY
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 25, 2025
He added that there wasn’t much wrong with their original lineup, noting that the two losses were due to clutch mistakes rather than blowouts, and argued that the double-big setup would only create more defensive mismatches.
“I have no idea what that would do! They might be better rebounders, but I don’t like the change,” he said. “I just don’t understand putting Mitchell and big KAT together, what that would do! It makes them slower, they’ll be a better rebounding team, but they’ll be worse defensively.”
He continued to criticize Thibodeau’s decision, claiming that the way the Knicks have been guarding Tyrese Haliburton with their bigs already allows the Pacers to create mismatches, and bringing in Robinson would only increase those situations.
Pointing out that the first two games came down to a single possession, Chuck reiterated that the lineup change was completely unnecessary, adding that such drastic moves are typically reserved for home games, not road ones.
“Yeah, that’s why you don’t do it! You don’t do it on the road, you do it at home! Because the Pacers are gonna come out like gangbusters tonight,” he continued. “So you’re telling me they’re gonna try to run with the Pacers (with Robinson in the lineup)?”
No matter what the Knicks do today, they know Game 3 is a must-win. Already down 2-0 and having lost home-court advantage, their only chance at a comeback starts—and ends—in Indiana. If they fail to take even one game, they’ll be swept in their first Conference Finals appearance in 25 years, bringing a bitter end to what has otherwise been a fantastic playoff run.
