The New York Knicks spent an enormous amount of draft capital on Mikal Bridges this offseason, hoping he would be the 3-and-D addition that makes them a championship contender. One game in, that “3” looks like a work in progress.
Bridges had a debut to forget against the Boston Celtics on Tuesday, as did the rest of the Knicks in a 132-109 loss to the defending champions. After one of the most eventful offseasons in recent NBA history, New York has been overwhelmed at the 3-point line to a historic degree.
After half, Bridges’ 3-point shooting looked like the bigger disaster. He was 0-for-5 from the field and 0-for-4 from 3-point range, and none of those shots looked close. The panic sirens were loud, but he managed to provide some silver linings by going 7-of-8 from the field and 2-of-3 from deep with the game all but decided during the second half.
Bridges finished the night 7-of-13 from the field (2-of-7 from deep) for 16 points, plus two assists, one turnover and no rebounds. The Knicks were outscored by 33 points when he was on the floor.
It could have been a lot worse, but Bridges got better. The only question is if that means his jump shot is set, or if the Knicks have a lot more to worry about with the guy they got for a superstar-level price tag.
Mikal Bridges had jump shot fluctuations before Knicks opener
Bridges struggling early in his Knicks debut was no surprise to people who followed his training camp and preseason. His jump shot went mildly viral on the first day of Knicks camp, when video went viral showing a tortured shot that involved him pulling the ball up and behind his head before his release.
The thing is, Bridges has always had an unconventional jump shot. Just looking his highlight reel from last year shows a shape with a bond and a high release point. It’s that problem that led Bridges to try to rework his jump shot, via the New York Post:
“From the time I got into the league, I tried to fix it until I was in college,” Bridges said. “So it’s been seven years of just everyday.
“When I got out of college, I tweaked it a little bit. And then my second year in the league, I had the problem, and have been trying to rebuild from that ever since. So just trying to tweak it. Pretty much.”
Unfortunately, Bridges may have just messed with something that was working. Bridges has quietly been one of the best shooters in the NBA since developing that problem, shooting 38.2% from deep through that gap and never worse than 36% in a season. He made exactly as many 3-pointers as Damian Lillard last season, in fewer attempts.
The initial results after the tweak were…unfortunate. Bridges went 2-for-19 from 3-point range in four preseason games, capped off by an 0-for-10 performance against the Wizards.
And then, a goose egg in the first half. It would be wild to overreact to call him a bust right now, but you can’t blame Knicks fans for still feeling uneasy about his place on a team that saw the daylights out to open the season.
