Mikal Bridges' Postseason Stats Jump has Helped Knicks' Title Chances

The New York Knicks continue peaking at just the right time, set to play in their first Eastern Conference Finals in 25 years after forcing a historic upset over the defending champion Boston Celtics.

These Knicks weren't taken seriously during the regular season, but they've finally ascending into the star-studded, two-way machine that many intended when they added an All-Star center in Karl-Anthony Towns and versatile wing Mikal Bridges into the fold over the offseason.

The couldn't have come together at the right time without everyone doing their part, requiring several key Knicks to step up where they haven't before.

That expectation applied to Bridges more than anyone, with his passive offense often leading to the tertiary scorer disappearing in Jalen Brunson's shadow. His once-lauded defense also slipped into replacement-level in his first year as a Knick, doing little to comfort the fans after the haul New York had to surrender for the wing.

Bridges came alive in his second round series against the Celtics, producing several highlight-worthy defensive plays which helped the Knicks seize a quick 2-0 advantage. His impact went well beyond a few crunch time stops, though, as he's approached games with the kind of effort that went missing during the regular season.

Not only has his defensive rebounding percentage jumped by a noticeable tick from 7% in the regular season to 11.1%, but the rate at which he's accumulated stocks has also experienced some real juice through 12 playoff games. His steal percentage doubled from 1.2% to 2.4$, and his block rate blew up even more, from 1.3% to 2.9%.

His stifling defense and inescapable wingspan made a big difference when impeding Boston star Jayson Tatum. OG Anunoby did the majority of the dirty work against Tatum through the four games he played pre-Achilles tear, but Bridges' impact was felt whenever he took a turn on the All-Star. Despite struggling in the matchup during the regular season, he made his presence known by keeping Tatum from going off through the first three matchups of the series.