Mikal Bridges Will Determine if Knicks Actually Finish Sweep vs. Spurs at Home

With the New York Knicks up 2-0 on the San Antonio Spurs, and the NBA Finals making its way to Madison Square Garden for Games 3 and 4, fans are having visions of a sweep to cap off what has been a fun-filled and incredible playoff journey.

The Knicks have won 13 straight games, which includes two series sweeps against the Sixers and Cavaliers, so it’s not impossible to think that they could do it again. However, it won’t be an easy feat to pull off, as the Spurs won’t go down quietly, as we saw on Friday night, and will give the Knicks everything they've got.

That said, for them to do the unthinkable and finish with a sweep, it's obviously going to take Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns to continue playing at a high level, which we should expect from the dynamic duo.

But one player who could play a huge role in ending this series in Madison Square Garden is veteran wing Mikal Bridges.

Mikal Bridges could be x-factor in helping the Knicks sweep against the Spurs

Bridges is coming off an efficient performance in the Knicks’ 105-104 win in Game 2. The former Villanova standout scored 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 4-of-6 from the arc in 41 minutes.

The last time Bridges dropped at least 20 points in a playoff game was in Game 3 against the Cavs in the Eastern Conference Finals. In that game, the versatile wing did all his damage within the arc, shooting a healthy 11-of-15 from the field for 22 points.

Looking back at Game 2’s win, Bridges was the difference-maker in the third quarter, as he scored nine points on 4-for-4 shooting from the field. The veteran forward didn’t do anything crazy; instead, he just took what the Spurs’ defense gave him.

When New York needed buckets in the 3rd quarter, who did they turn to?

Mikal Bridges (9 PTS, 4-4 FGM) 😤

He finished the game with 20 PTS (8-13 FGM), 6 REB, and 6 AST in NYK’s W ‼️ pic.twitter.com/HZDSXKzy2Y
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2026

In Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Bridges didn’t take a lot of shot attempts (six), as the Spurs were playing tight defense on the perimeter. However, as we saw in Game 2 and over his last seven games, when Bridges is knocking down his shots and playing outstanding defense, he can be another weapon that Brunson and Towns can lean on.

Mikal Bridges vs. San Antonio Spurs 6/3/2026

9 PTS | 3-6 FG | W 105-95 pic.twitter.com/VXPYlCXQsD
— NBA Shooting Audit (@NBAShotAudit) June 5, 2026

The 29-year-old forward has had a roller-coaster ride to start the playoffs, as his offense was nothing special to talk about through the first five games in the opening round against the Hawks.

He averaged 7.2 points per game on 43.8 percent shooting from the field and 26.7 percent from deep. However, he started to figure things out in the Knicks’ Game 6 blowout win over the Hawks, dropping 24 points (10-of-12 FG, 2-of-2 3pt), five rebounds, and three assists.

From there, Bridges started to round into form and look like the guy we’ve known him to be over his career. A guy who can grab boards, score 15-20 points a night, and defend multiple guys on the floor.

The Spurs aren’t an easy team to defend because of Victor Wembanyama and their trio of guards, but when you have Bridges, it makes the task a bit simpler.

Heading into Game 3, the Knicks' goal should be to assert their will on the Spurs early with Towns and Brunson leading the way. But if Bridges can get his offense going early, that will only open the floor more for the other guys, and hopefully lead to a huge win, putting New York one step closer to a title.

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