The New York Knicks traded five first-round picks to acquire Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets. That is undoubtedly a massive haul for any player and is arguably an overpay for a player of his caliber.
Mikal Bridges has not played up to expectations with the Knicks so far
While the Knicks were not expecting him to play as the No. 1 option as he did with the Nets, he has been fairly underwhelming to open the season. His baseline stats look serviceable, as he averaging 15.3 points on 46.7% shooting, but he is also shooting just 31% from three, which is a big drop-off from his career 37% mark.
Bridges has also been a little slow defensively, as opponents he is defending are shooting 48.4% from the floor and 41% from three. Bridges was a First-Team All-Defense player with the Phoenix Suns in 2022, a year in which his defended opponents shot just 34% from three in which he established himself as one of the game’s best perimeter defenders.
Bridges is still adapting to his role
With Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns taking over as the main initiators on offense, Bridges was going to have a lesser role with New York on that side of the ball. However, that would mean that they would expect more on the defensive side, and they are not getting that while also not getting his offensive prowess.
Bridges is still trying to build chemistry with the other pieces around him, so growing pains are to be expected as he adapts to this role. However, the Knicks need better production out of him considering how many critical assets they gave up to land him in the offseason.
The Knicks need Bridges to turn things around
In Sunday’s loss to the Indiana Pacers, Bridges had his worst game of the season thus far. He scored just eight points in 41 minutes and shot 0-for-6 from three. Bridges also had a plus-minus of -11 in that game and has a plus-minus of -26 over his last four games, the third-worst on the team in that span.
When he is playing at his best, he can be a very effective component of the team’s success. But with him struggling, the team is also struggling as they are 4-5 to start the season. Bridges will have the opportunity to turn things around when he and the Knicks take on the shorthanded Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday.