Starting July 6, the Knicks will be able to extend Mikal Bridges on up to a four-year, $156 million deal, and have until June 30, 2026 to do so — a day before he enters unrestricted free agency.
Historically with key players on expiring contracts, Leon Rose has either extended them (RJ Barrett, Jalen Brunson) or dealt them before they could potentially walk (Immanuel Quickley, Julius Randle), setting up a pivotal year for Bridges.
New York acquired the wing last offseason via trade, moving four unprotected first-round picks, an unprotected pick swap and a protected first to secure Brunson’s former college teammate and one of the premier 3-and-D wings in the league. While that tremendous haul (that implicitly included a Knicks-Nets and power of friendship premium) came with unfair expectations that hung over Bridges like a black cloud, he had a solid first year with room for improvement both internally and via coaching.
The Knicks made waves quickly after their Eastern Conference Finals ousting, relieving head coach Tom Thibodeau, a strong suggestion that they felt this roster wasn’t being maximized. Bridges was likely a big part of that, often looking lost in the offense and making headlines with a public criticism of Thibodeau during the regular season.
With his extension looming, New York will need to weigh giving him another half or full season under a new coach, or dealing him in the offseason.
Bridges averaged 17.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 59.4 percent shooting from two and 35.4 percent shooting from three this season, keeping his iron man streak alive by playing all 82 games despite averaging a career-high 37 minutes a night. During the playoffs, he averaged 15.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists on 51.4 percent shooting from two and 33.3 percent from three, again playing every game.
The good? Bridges was available, absolutely nasty in the mid-range, improved defensively as the season progressed, and was always in the flow of the team, never forcing things or demanding the ball be in his hands.
This was also to his detriment at times, going entire stretches without looking at the rim and fading into the background. The real red flags on his season were a major regression in his above-the-break three-point shooting and complete aversion to contact, rim attacks, and free throws.
There’s reason to expect improvement in some of these areas. Bridges is a career knockdown shooter and did some tweaking to his jump shot that likely needed some more time in the lab, and he could get more aggressive going to the rim in a different offense.
It’s hard to classify Bridges as anything more than an afterthought in Thibodeau’s offense, which gives high-volume scorers the freedom to create their own looks but can leave more passive players flailing. This combined with Bridges’ timidity left a lot on the table offensively, where it was clear he could be more of a contributor in the pick-and-roll and mid-post (like during his Christmas Day 41 points) if it were more of an emphasis.
Defensively, Bridges wasn’t up to snuff out of the gate but slowly came around, peaking in the postseason. While his playoff stats were underwhelming, he was big in the most clutch moments and games, such as Game 6 against Detroit, plus the comebacks against Boston.
This should give the Knicks enough confidence to bring him back for 2025-26 and potentially extend him after seeing how he looks. It would be malpractice to not hear our out trade offers on any player, but the options with Bridges are limited.
For one, consider what theoretical shooting guard the Knicks would want next to Brunson. They’d need size, the ability to shoot, defend, and be a secondary creator when called upon.
This describes Bridges to the tee when he’s at his best, which we saw plenty of. Meanwhile, there are few other two guards in the league with this portfolio. Dealing him in a one-for-two trade that nets the Knicks more depth is possible, but with most realistic ideas, it lowers their ceiling dramatically.
The wild card is if Milwaukee or Phoenix sees Bridges as a key piece of a Giannis Antetokounmpo or Kevin Durant swap. In those cases the Knicks would have to strongly consider parting with Bridges and figuring out the rest later.
Bridges may not have been a five first-round pick player for the Knicks, but he did enough to warrant committing to a long-term future with this core, especially with some potential improvements due.
Nothing is off the table in this team’s pursuit of a championship, but Bridges looks like a worthy piece to keep while chasing that goal.
Read the full article here