With the dust finally settling, we can make our Mikal Bridges trade analysis.
The Bridges trade was one of the biggest stories in sports earlier in the week, and it kicked off what might be a series of very interesting Knicks offseason moves. Also, with OG Anunoby locked in for years to come, the Knicks have two elite perimeter stoppers to work under Tom Thibodeau.
Still, this was a bit of a polarizing move. Are the Knicks championship contenders now? Did they overpay? What should we make of this Villanova Knicks squad? With that in mind, we’ll take a deeper look at this transaction and its potential implications.
Mikal Bridges trade analysis: Was that the right move by the Knicks?
The original reaction to Knicks trading for Bridges was mostly positive. It made sense for both teams. However, the return is something you would expect for one of the greatest small forwards in NBA history, which — with all due respect — Bridges isn’t.
The Knicks gave five first-round picks, pick swaps, and Bojan Bogdanovic. The Nets draft picks will be pretty much non-existent, so this is a move they needed to make to rebuild for the future. They made the most of their leverage because they knew how badly the Knicks wanted Bridges, and they got an elite return for it.
However, as much as this return might be steep, the Knicks were the only team in the league that could actually afford to do that. For starters, most of those picks will most likely be in the low 20s, as they should be a competitive team for years to come.
On top of that, you can’t put a price on chemistry, and these guys clearly know how to play with each other. Three of their four former Wildcats won two national championships together in college, and they’ve stayed pretty close off the court since.
Bridges is one of the most durable athletes out there. He hasn’t missed a single game since high school, and he even played 83 games in the regular season when he was traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Brooklyn Nets. That makes him just about perfect for Tom Thibodeau, who’s infamous for playing his top guys heavy minutes.
Bridges let the Nets know that he wanted to be a Knick, and while they had no obligation to move him because he still had two years left in his contract, it was a move that made too much sense for both parties; that return was just too good to ignore.
They might not be done
The best part about this is that the Knicks might not be done making moves just yet. They could still find a trade suitor for Julius Randle to flip him for another star, perhaps even Paul George, as both he and OG Anunoby could play the four spot without it being an issue.
Moving on from Randle could also likely help them keep Isaiah Harstenstein, who’s expected to fetch a big contract in free agency, or even get more depth behind the injury-prone Mitchell Robinson.
The Knicks were poised for a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals last season before injuries stood in their way. Bridges is the ultimate Iron Man, and while not an All-Star, he proved that he could be a 20+ PPG scorer given the opportunity, so him being there will take pressure off Jalen Brunson‘s shoulders.
And if the Knicks continue to flip some of their players to add other rotational pieces around their Villanova guys and Anunoby, they might be a legitimate dark horse to win it all in the next two years.
