New York Knicks All-Star Jalen Brunson recently unveiled a captivating story about the drive that his not-so-new teammate Mikal Bridges has shown this offseason.
Brunson knows more than a thing or two about his Knicks running mate Bridges after the latter was traded to New York earlier this summer. The pair won two national titles at Villanova in 2016 and 2018. After spending the first six years of their NBA careers on rival teams, be it Brunson’s Dallas Mavericks and Bridges’ Phoenix Suns, followed by Brunson’s Knicks and Bridges’ Brooklyn Nets, they have joined forces to try and conquer the competitive Eastern Conference and win a championship in 2024-25.
The latest recount from Brunson regarding his 27-year-old co-star sings an interlude that always leads up to a banger of an album — that album being an NBA Finals run.
Knicks: Jalen Brunson shares story about Mikal Bridges’ addiction with the gym
As a recent guest at Fanatics Fest NYC, the Knicks’ MVP candidate from 2023-24 filled listeners in on how Bridges wasted no time putting in work in the gym after a long flight:
“That man got off the plane from London last night (August 16). And then he was in the gym this morning (August 17), bright early,” Brunson revealed at Fanatics Fest NYC. “That’s everything you should know about him.”
Brunson believes that Bridges could help them get over the hump in their quest for a title
Bridges is known for being a workhorse around the league. His motor and durability have largely factored into him having played every single game in his career to date. He even played 83 games in 2022-23 due to his trade at that season’s deadline and the Nets’ schedule being behind the Sun’s slate that he came from.
Bridges is the perfect remedy for a Knicks team that saw All-Star Julius Randle miss 36 games with a dislocated shoulder, Mitchell Robinson miss 51 games due to lower-body ailments and OG Anunoby sits for 27 games with an elbow infirmity.
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Brunson asserted that the former 2022 Defensive Player of the Year runner-up is the missing piece to their championship puzzle. Primarily, Bridges will be a perfect crutch should Randle miss time in 2024-25. He’s also shown that he’s capable of cementing himself as a volume scorer in the league, and an efficient one at that, with averages of 26.1 points per game and 19.6 PPG in his last two campaigns with the Nets.
If his work ethic continues as Brunson outlined and he seamlessly blends into New York’s scheme on both ends of the floor, which every indicator suggests that he will, the talented three-and-d rising star could indeed be the missing ingredient that fuels the Knicks to the Larry O’Brien trophy next June.
