Mikal Bridges Took Less Than He Could’ve Demanded in Extension With New York Knicks

The New York Knicks have signed Mikal Bridges to a four-year, $150 million contract extension and the NBA forward took less than he could have demanded to stay with the franchise, according to James L. Edwards III of The Athletic.

Bridges, like Jalen Brunson did last summer, took less than the max to remain with the Knicks.

“Bridges took less than he could have demanded to stay with the Knicks. The contract will come in $6 million short of the maximum extension for which Bridges was eligible,” Edwards III wrote. “His logic, according to a league source, was the same as Brunson’s when the All-NBA point guard signed a four-year extension last summer: Bridges is prioritizing sustained success for the Knicks, who have avoided exceeding the second apron during each of the past two seasons and now have a better chance to continue doing so moving forward.”

The Knicks acquired Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets last offseason. Bridges, who has never missed a game in the NBA with the Phoenix Suns, Nets and Knicks, averaged 17.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists last season while shooting 50.0% from the field, 35.4% from beyond the arc and 81.4% from the free-throw line.

Bridges turns 29 on August 30. He has career averages of 14.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 556 NBA games with the Suns, Nets and Knicks. He’s close friends with Brunson and Josh Hart. All three players went to Villanova.

New York made the Eastern Conference Finals last season for the first time since 2000. The Knickerbockers lost to the Indiana Pacers in six games.

Owner James Dolan and Leon Rose made a shocking move after the Pacers series, firing Tom Thibodeau as head coach. Thibodeau, who has coached the Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves and Knicks, was 226-174 in the regular season and 24-23 in the playoffs and won the 2021 Coach of the Year Award in The Big Apple.

New York’s new head coach is Mike Brown, who has coached the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings. He is 454-304 in the regular season and 50-40 in the playoffs. 

The Knicks are a historic franchise, but they haven’t won a title since 1973. It will be fascinating to see if New York wins a championship in the Brown era.