Mikal Bridges' Finals Experience Already Coming in Handy for Knicks

Mikal Bridges is providing leadership to the Knicks in the lead up to the Finals. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

While the Knicks' main rotation features many veteran players brought in as outside additions, the Finals are uncharted territory for most of them. In fact, only Jordan Clakrson and Mikal Bridges have played for the title before.

This gives both guys a unique perspective that New York can use during its preparations, especially since each of their previous Finals trips ended in losses. Bridges suffered the worse of the two defeats, as his Suns choked a 2-0 lead to the Bucks in 2021.

But that pain also create lessons to learn from, and he's passing them on to the Knicks. This past week at practice, Bridges shared significant advice to his teammates about blocking out the "talk about how great we are." He said, "All that doesn't matter ... worry about just what we have to do to be better."

"Lot of questions, lot of talk about how great we are, how great we've been. All that doesn't matter. We've got to stay locked in and go win."

Mikal Bridges on advice he'll give his teammates entering The Finals: pic.twitter.com/kLWdLzEXdK

— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) May 28, 2026

Knicks must heed Mikal Bridges' advice from past Finals heartbreak to avoid a repeat of history

There's a couple of ways to look at what Bridges advised. First of all, it's just another point of evidence that shows how locked in New York is and the cool heads guys are keeping despite an incredible playoff run. That's been made clear in comments by players, coaches and barely celebrating the ECF win despite that being a huge achievement.

But, this also feels like Bridges speaking from a place of a past mistake that may have cost Phoenix. At the time, the Suns came into the Finals with a ton of hype after capturing the 2-seed in the West and beating the Lakers (six games), Nuggets (sweep) and Clippers (six games). They were even favored to beat Milwaukee, which had a more eventful path to winning the East.

Getting the early jump on the Bucks did nothing to keep expectations in check. It'd be no surprise if Bridges and co. were already envisioning themselves hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy. But they then let Milwaukee get the momentum back with a 20-point win in Game 3, and failed to stop the bleeding from there.

This Finals isn't quite the same context as Milwaukee and Phoenix's tilt, but the takeaway still rings true. The Knicks are seeing more respect from the media and their peers, which could distract them from the hunger for a title if they think they've already made it. Having over a week of rest ahead of the last series also allows plenty of outside voices to get in their heads.

This message from Bridges, though, should make sure everyone stays on the correct path as they ramp up for the Finals. Most players never even get this far in their entire careers, so learning from someone who not only got there, but also saw things go right and then terribly wrong, is an insanely valuable resource.

Though this isn't any kind of tangible on-court factor, it is part of the mental game and off-floor preparation that's just as vital in a series where either team could win and one mistake could be the difference.

Bridges making sure he gives out this wisdom brings confidence the team won't come out like the title is simply a formality due to their recent praise, or let their foot off the gas if they do take an early lead, and instead finish the job despite whatever they've accomplished to this point.