Mikal Bridges could put together his first true statement performance of the season with support from the New York Knicks and their home crowd on Friday.
Knicks predicted to get Mikal Bridges going vs. Pelicans
NBA analyst Tommy Beer predicted that the Knicks will shower their talented star guard with love and heightened attention in their battle against the New Orleans Pelicans at Madison Square Garden, saying:
“FWIW, I expect loud cheers for Mikal Bridges at MSG tonight, and for his teammates to focus on getting him involved in the offense early/often…” Beer published on X hours before tip-off. “If/when he sees a few jumpers drop – he’ll be off to the races.”
Bridges is struggling in star-studded Knicks lineup
Bridges has been under fire for several days due to his prolonged cold stretch to start the campaign. He’s averaging a subpar 15.5 points per game and has only had five 20-point games on the year.
The Villanova product’s eight points on 3-10 shooting from the floor along with three turnovers against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday generated massive criticism. After New York’s 99-98 win over the Hornets, Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau shot down the notion that there’s cause to pause over Bridges’ cold spell and teammate Josh Hart declared that it will be his and his troops’ job to help the 28-year-old find his rhythm going forward.
Bridges’ suffering a similar fate to former star No. 3 options
Bridges seems to be going through what the basketball world has seen unfold recurrently in recent years. Stars like Kevin Love on the eventual 2016 NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers and Chris Bosh on the title-winning Miami Heat were gifted scorers who struggled to find their footing in lineups with other offensive players of their ilk.
That being said, should Knicks All-Stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson, as well as Hart make a concerted effort to feed Bridges from the onset, it could serve as a great gesture of confidence in their talented teammate and lead to a much-needed eruption from him against New Orleans.
