The Brooklyn Nets are one of the teams in the NBA that are caught in the middle as they look for ways to improve enough to make it back to the playoffs next season. As Brooklyn tries to accomplish that task this offseason, they have made it known how they feel about one of their better players.
Per Fred Katz of The Athletic, the Nets do not have any interest in trading Mikal Bridges despite receiving some great offers from other teams since acquiring Bridges in the middle of the 2022-23 season. While most have been discussing Brooklyn’s unwillingness to trade Bridges, the reason why could be more to talk about within the Nets fanbase.
“According to league sources, Brooklyn’s front office has told teams it views Bridges as a costar to whichever big name it can trade for down the line,” Katz wrote. The Nets have been linked to star players, most notably Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, in various reports since Brooklyn is one of the teams in the league looking for a major influx of talent.
Katz goes on to write “that’s the organization’s long-term plan — though all it takes for the blueprint to change is one hint from Bridges that he wouldn’t re-sign in a couple of seasons.” While the Nets would prefer to pair Bridges with someone like Mitchell, or any other star-level player that becomes over the next two years, one thing they should keep in mind is that plan depends on Bridges wanting to stay in Brooklyn.
At this moment, there hasn’t been any reporting to indicate that Bridges would not re-sign with the Nets when he is a free-agent after the conclusion of the 2025-26 campaign. However, Brooklyn has to remember that if things aren’t going well in the meantime, they may have more to worry about than simply adding a star to pair with Bridges.
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