Knicks Notes: Mikal Bridges delivers on both sides; bench depth starting to make difference

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Mikal Bridges delivered on both ends of the floor for the Knicks in Monday’s win over Atlanta.

He had 26 points on 17 shots and ten of his 26 came in a pivotal 14-4 run to start the second half.

Bridges was also the primary defender on Trae Young on a night when Young had nine turnovers and missed 14 of 22 shots.

Head coach Tom Thibodeau was impressed with Bridges’ defense on Young.

“He’s such a tough cover and there’s a million pick-and-rolls you have to defend,” Thibs said after the win. “Sometimes you can defend them really well and he can make [a shot]. So I thought he was really disciplined. You have to be that. And he kept going.”

Bridges also had four assists in one of his most complete performances as a Knick. He rebounded well from a difficult night on Friday against Minnesota and Anthony Edwards.

“He was our point of attack defender and he did a great job today. He started and everything kind of trickled down,” said Josh Hart.

Bridges’ play has been dissected closely this season – his first as a Knick. Fans and media are correctly holding Bridges to a high standard because of the significant price New York paid to acquire him from Brooklyn.

Bridges seems to be unaffected by the noise and/or added pressure that comes with his new role.

“That’s what I’m here for,” he said when asked about guarding the opponent’s lead ball handler every game. “That’s what I get paid for. And like I always said, I got my teammates behind me so it’s never just me against that guy. So it’s just team defense and try my best to try to disrupt.”

Speaking of team defense, Bridges pointed out that Karl-Anthony Towns did well on Monday by playing further up against Atlanta’s pick-and-rolls. Towns has been playing in drop coverage for significant stretches of this season.

“That’s one thing – KAT, you know, he’s been the 4 for a while and been on the perimeter playing with Rudy [Gobert],” Bridges said. “… Him being up helps the team’s defense and helps the guy on the ball getting back.”

The Knicks had lost three of their past four home games prior to Monday’s win. They had also lost six of nine overall…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/knicks-notes-mikal-bridges-delivers-023712653.html

Author : SNY

Publish date : 2025-01-21 02:37:00

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