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Mikal Bridges Rumors
After the Bucks lost to the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the 2025 playoffs, NBA insider Shams Charania of ESPN reported that Antetokounmpo was open-minded about leaving Milwaukee. “With the Knicks and all the other teams kind of keeping an eye on Milwaukee and what may or may not happen there, I think one of the reasons why he (Bridges) has not been extended yet is because once you extend him, you cannot trade him for six months,” Begley said on The Putback. “And I think until the Giannis stuff is fully settled, and I don’t think it’s fully settled yet, as much as I’m sure Bucks fans hate to hear that because I would hate to hear that if I was a Bucks fan, but I don’t think it’s fully settled yet. “And so as teams continue to keep an eye on that, continue to at least plan with that somewhere in the back of their mind, I think that’s why you haven’t seen Bridges extended yet. When he does extend, I think that would tell you Giannis is put to bed, is off the table in a sense.”
Not every team sees Jaylen Brown as a valuable addition?
Jake Fischer: I think all along there was never really a plan to move Jaylen or Derrick. So I don't think anything got close, and I don’t think they were really willing to move those guys either. Like, you would have had to make a trade—Desmond Bane, Mikal Bridges–type of offer—for Derrick White. And honestly, for Jaylen—as great as he is—I think a lot of teams look at his salary number and go: “Why would you be paying what Boston values him at, for that contract?” So his deal isn’t universally viewed as an incredible addition if you were to trade for him.
James Edwards III: Mikal Bridges is here again to watch the Knicks game, sitting near the front office. He's eligible for an extension this summer. Him being here and sitting next to Mike Brown, Leon Rose and Co. is a good sign that something will get done.
Speaking of the Knicks: Sources say Boston told at least one rival team that it would have insisted on a "Mikal Bridges-type" package to part with Derrick White, league sources say. The Celtics have certainly received no shortage of inbound trade calls on both White and Jaylen Brown in recent days, but nothing got serious on either front.
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Mikal Bridges, Mitchell Robinson on trade block?
Frank Isola: One of the reasons Mikal Bridges’ name has surfaced in trade discussions, according to several team executives. Mitchell Robinson is another player being discussed. Stefan Bondy: Mikal Bridges is now eligible to sign an extension. The max is 4 years, $156 million.
Yossi Gozlan: Early 2023: The Suns have Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, Chris Paul, Deandre Ayton, and all their own picks. 2025: The Suns have Devin Booker, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, no starting-level center, few picks, and Bradley Beal.
Grizzlies have been interested in OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Franz Wagner in the past
The Grizzlies — from Mikal Bridges to OG Anunoby to Orlando's own Franz Wagner — have made several aggressive trade pursuits of their own laden with draft capital in recent years, league sources say.
In speaking with several sources Sunday in the wake of the Bane deal, the universal belief is that any draft packages going to Phoenix in a Durant deal likely won't surpass the haul of draft picks coming to Memphis for Bane, who hasn't yet made an All-Star team. "Everyone has to throw their prior precedents and baselines out," said one executive, who referred to not only the Bane trade but the five first-rounders the New York Knicks traded for Mikal Bridges last year as having nothing to do with how to properly value Durant. "Those deals don't mean Durant is worth 12 firsts now," they said.
Sam Amick: With Thibs, though—man, sometimes it just feels like the obvious thing gets overlooked. They just did something they haven’t done in a quarter century. That probably means he should continue doing the job. To my knowledge, there wasn’t a player revolt. There wasn’t disharmony in the locker room. Of course, there was some discussion—mostly led by Mikal Bridges—about playing time at times, but still. It’s crazy. They got to the conference finals. This is a franchise that’s been in the dumps for a long time. They’ve had a few good years, but still—it’s a little nuts. One of the more wild firings we've seen in a while."
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Jay Wright, Johnnie Bryant candidates for Knicks head coach job?
When it comes to available coaches, longtime Villanova coach Jay Wright — who has long expressed a reluctance to make the leap to the NBA — and Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Johnnie Bryant quickly emerged as presumed likely candidates … emphasis on presumed. Wright is obviously close with the Knicks' former Villanova trio of Brunson, Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges but, again, has repeatedly said that he does not have NBA coaching aspirations.
Erik Slater: Mikal Bridges attempted 0.8 free throws per 36 minutes during the playoffs. He attempted 7.0 per 36 with the Nets in 2023 after the PHX trade. The role is obviously different, but it's been strange to see such a dramatic shift in his confidence and mindset over the last 2 years.
Now they enter the offseason with Anunoby, Brunson and Hart signed through 2028 and Towns and Miles “Deuce” McBride signed through 2027. Bridges and Robinson are entering the final years of their contracts. It’s too early for them to lock in any major decisions about the roster, though Bridges’ next deal will be a story of the summer. He becomes eligible for a four-year, $156 million extension before next season.
Knicks coaching staff 'rubbed the wrong way' when Mikal Bridges questioned heavy minutes Knicks starters were playing
In March, Mikal Bridges violated one of the no-nos in playing for Thibodeau, questioning the heavy minutes the starters played under the coach during a news conference with reporters. The comments rubbed the coaching staff the wrong way, sources said, and showed a disconnect. Bridges may have been near the end of his first season with the Knicks, but he was still acting like the new guy, though the drama hardly led to anyone’s demise. Thibodeau did not stop playing Bridges, who led the NBA in total minutes during the regular season.
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