Knicks Take Lead in Mikal Bridges Trade

Mikal Bridges is playing his best basketball for the New York Knicks in the playoffs.

New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges drives the ball against Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks are reaping the benefits of a blockbuster trade they made last summer to acquire Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets.

Sure, it took five first-round picks to acquire Bridges, but his efforts on both ends of the floor to start off the series against the Boston Celtics have proven exactly why the team acquired him.

The Athletic insider Fred Katz praised Bridges for his play on both ends of the floor.

"This is why the Knicks traded four unprotected first-round picks. And another protected one. And a first-round swap. It wasn’t because they thought Bridges was some future MVP, worth a haul on par with other deals for superstars of the past. It was because he was the piece to put them over the top. It was because of the defense that he didn’t always show during the regular season, the shot-making he didn’t even present until the final quarter of Game 2," Katz wrote.

"But this is why they wanted him. Bridges went for 14 points in the fourth after failing to score over the first three quarters."

"For a second consecutive game, he ripped off the greatest defensive play of the Knicks’ season, this time obliterating a Tatum shot that could have won it for Boston."

"Bridges is making up for an up-and-down season in the loudest of ways."

Bridges struggled to find his footing throughout the regular season, but he looks as comfortable as ever when it matters most for the Knicks.

It's tough to say at this point in time if the trade was still worth it for the Knicks because they still have loftier goals to accomplish, but this is the best that Bridges deal has looked all season long for New York.

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