Tag: Mikal Bridges

Nets’ Mikal Bridges discusses the Grizzlies giving more effort

After Monday’s 106-102 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges discussed how the Grizzlies gave more effort.

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets have stated throughout this season that the goal is to be in the play-in tournament at the very least. Based on their performance of Monday, Brooklyn is going to have to work harder if they want to get to the postseason.

“Yeah, it’s tough. They just played harder than us,” Nets guard Mikal Bridges said after Monday’s 106-102 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. After two impressive wins over the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn laid an egg against a Grizzlies team listing nine players, including Jaren Jackson Jr., on their injury report.

“I think just maybe relax a little bit,” Bridges said of what the team could have done better in the contest. “They’re (the Grizzlies) just playing harder than us. I think they out-rebounded us by a lot. Take a lot of credit on both ends, defensively as well. Just boxing out, not getting the rebound, and stuff like that.”

Against a Memphis team that is starting plenty of guys who were in the G League earlier this season, Brooklyn could not get their offense on track at any point in this one. The hope is that the Nets can play better when they face the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday.

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Nets’ Mikal Bridges reacts to beating Hawks for second straight time

After Saturday’s 114-102 win over the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges reacted to scoring 38 points in a pivotal game.

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets had an important task ahead of them when they knew that they had the Atlanta Hawks coming to town for two games in a row. With Atlanta holding the 10th and final spot in the Eastern Conference’s play-in tournament, Brooklyn knew that their playoff chances could change dramatically if they beat the Hawks both times.

“Yeah, I mean, that’s how it is,” Nets guard Mikal Bridges said after Saturday’s 114-102 win over Atlanta. Bridges broke out of his scoring slump to a tune of 38 points while also making some plays on the defensive end as well. Brooklyn’s two wins over Atlanta over the past three days brings both teams within two games of each other.

“Every game is really important for us,” Bridges continued. “So, treat every game like it’s our last, and we just gotta keep fighting every day. Take one game at a time.” While the Nets achieved some monumental wins to keep their playoff hopes alive, the work is not done for them.

Brooklyn is still two games behind Atlanta for the 10th seed so if the Nets are going to make up ground while the Hawks are missing Trae Young, they will have to take care of business over the next week. Brooklyn’s next four games are against the Memphis Grizzlies, Philadelphia 76ers, Detroit Pistons, and Charlotte Hornets before facing the Cleveland Cavaliers on Mar. 10.

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Nets’ Mikal Bridges discusses losing to the Knicks at home

Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges described what it was like for the Barclays Center crowd to cheer for the New York Knicks during a loss.

The Brooklyn Nets have not had a good season to this point as a 13-10 start has devolved into a 21-33 record heading into the All-Star break. While Brooklyn is just 2.5 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the 10th seed in the Eastern Conference, the final play-in tournament spot, this season has not been what everyone has expected.

Coming into the 2023-24 campaign, the Nets were expected to be one of the teams in the NBA with a losing record, but just narrowly missing the postseason. However, there were some outlets who predicted that the best case scenario for Brooklyn would be making the play-in tournament if they played above expectations.

With the Nets beginning the season at a 13-10 record, which had them on pace to win 46 games, it had appeared to everyone that Brooklyn was going to be better than originally thought. However, the bottom has fallen out for the Nets since then as they are just 8-23 from that point on due to a variety of issues throughout the organization.

One of the themes of this season following Brooklyn’s uninspiring performance heading into the All-Star break has been the growing presence of fans cheering for the visiting team instead of the Nets. Nets guard Mikal Bridges recently described on an episode of the “Roommates Show” podcast what it was like to hear the fans at Barclays Center cheering for the New York Knicks instead of the Nets:

“No, that wasn’t fun, you know? If we would have won, then I would’ve just been like aha, but, we lost so that wasn’t really fun. Especially, it was the play when y’all (the Knicks) got the block and then Julius (Randle) got the dunk. That’s when it really blew me. Just the reaction off the block was crazy.”

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Nets’ Mikal Bridges points to lack of ‘effort’ for blowout loss to Celtics

After Wednesday’s 136-86 loss at the Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges cited lack of ‘effort’ for the blowout loss.

The Brooklyn Nets have the opportunity to turn their season around so that they can firmly put themselves back into the Eastern Conference playoff race with less than 30 games left in the season. However, they will have to do so on the fly and if they’re going to do that, they have to give effort.

In Wednesday’s 136-86 loss at the Boston Celtics, the one thing that stood out was the lack of effort by the Nets. Brooklyn was going up against arguably the best team in the NBA and while the Nets can’t change their talent level, they can change how hard they play on both ends of the floor.

From the opening tip, it seemed that the Nets never made it out of the locker room as the Celtics began the contest on a 16-4 run and never looked back. Brooklyn’s best quarter in terms of point differential was the fourth quarter and that was when some of the players at the bottom of the roster like Trendon Watford and Jalen Wilson got a chance to play.

Wednesday wasn’t a game that the Nets lost on the margins or through being out-schemed. It marked a game where Brooklyn did not show up on either end of the floor because of the lack of effort. Nets guard Mikal Bridges said as much after the contest:

“I think it’s a lot that just kind of came with tonight. I think effort for us, especially defensively, I think we didn’t have that effort. Whatever the game plan we had up there, I think we just didn’t execute it as we should.”

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Nets’ Mikal Bridges says team has a ‘sense of urgency’ with 29 games left

Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges said that the team has a ‘sense of urgency’ with 29 games left for the Nets to make it into the playoffs.

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets (21-32) are 11 games below .500 and are 2.5 games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the 10th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Brooklyn is still within striking distance of the play-in tournament, but if they’re going to make sure that they play at least one game in the postseason, they’ll have to start winning games soon.

“Yeah, for sure,” Nets guard Mikal Bridges said after Tuesday’s 118-110 loss to the Boston Celtics. Bridges put up 27 points and three assists in Tuesday’s loss that was the front end of this home-and-home series between Brooklyn and Boston. These teams will see each other again in Boston less than 24 hours after Tuesday’s final buzzer.

“I mean, we want to make the playoffs, be in the play-in,” Bridges said. “I mean, just try to get there. You know, nobody wants to go home early. So, yeah, everybody has a sense of urgency.”

At one point this season, the Nets were in a position where they were hoping to make one of the six playoff spots and not have to participate in the play-in tournament scenario at all. However, after the way that the season has gone since the team was 13-10, it looks like they ran out of time to make that aspiration possible.

The good thing is, they are still within range of the play-in tournament and after Wednesday’s game at the Celtics, Brooklyn will have some much-needed time off because of the All-Star break. Once that break ends, they will have to get to work soon if they want to secure one of those coveted play-in tournament spots.

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Nets’ Mikal Bridges believes team still ‘has a shot’ at the playoffs

Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges believes that the Nets still ‘have a shot’ at the playoffs despite being 20-30.

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets began this season with a goal of being as competitive as possible in the aftermath of the Big 3 era. While the playoffs looked to be an afterthought in the beginning of the season, the Nets stand outside of the Eastern Conference playoff picture heading into the trade deadline.

“Just got to be better,” Bridges said after Tuesday’s 119-107 loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Bridges put up 28 points and four assists in the contest and while Brooklyn outscored Dallas 60-54 in the second half, the Nets needed more if they were going to come back from a 23-point deficit.

“Obviously, we’re not where we want to be at right now,” Bridges explained. “Obviously, there’s still a shot. Just got to play better. That’s what it is. Yes, I do think so.”

After Tuesday’s loss to the Mavericks, the Nets head into the trade deadline with a 20-30 record. For the past month or so, Brooklyn has in reach of the 10th seed in the Eastern Conference, but if they’re going to make the play-in tournament by being the 10th seed, they have to start winning games soon.

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Warriors’ Steve Kerr discusses Nets’ Mikal Bridges and Cam Thomas

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr had plenty of good things to say about the Brooklyn Nets duo of Mikal Bridges and Cam Thomas.

NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets have not had the most inspiring season as they are seemingly far from what they looked like when they actually had a winning record. One thing that the Nets have discovered this season is that they have a promising duo on their hands in Mikal Bridges and Cam Thomas.

“Well, I coached Mikal (Bridges) this past summer, I know his game pretty well,” Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said of Bridges prior to Monday’s 109-98 win over the Nets. Kerr was able to coach Bridges, along with Nets teammate Cam Johnson, during the 2023 FIBA World Cup this past summer. Kerr had nothing, but good things to say about the former Villanova star.

“He’s a fantastic defensive player and he’s really blossomed into an excellent offensive player,” Kerr said. While Bridges has shown over the course of the past year that he’s much more than a player who can play defense and shoot three-pointers, Kerr also noticed how easy Thomas makes it for Bridges in terms of scoring and how they work well together.

“And, Cam, I think he had 40 on us last time in San Francisco, He’s a really dynamic scorer,” Kerr said of Thomas. In the first matchup between the Nets and Warriors this season on Dec. 16, Thomas put up 41 points on 15-of-24 shooting as Golden State was able to see his scoring prowess almost steal the game for Brooklyn on the road.

“He’s got a strong body, it’s hard to knock him off his base,” Kerr said. Kerr also recognized that the Nets present a unique matchup for opponents because of how their roster is constructed. “And, this team, when you prepare for them, that’s what jumps out. It’s just the number of wings and big guards they have, all of whom can shoot threes and switch. And, so, those two guys in particular, are excellent players,” Kerr said of Bridges and Thomas.

Bridges and Thomas struggled mightily on Monday as they combined for 31 points on 9-of-36 (25%) shooting from the field and 1-of-13 (8%) from three-point land. Despite that, Kerr made it clear that Brooklyn has a promising duo on that team moving forward.

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Report: Rockets were willing to include Jalen Green in trade for Nets’ Mikal Bridges

Jake Fischer reported that the Houston Rockets were willing to include Jalen Green in trade proposals for Brooklyn Nets guard Mikal Bridges.

The NBA trade deadline is on Thursday and like most teams in the league, the Brooklyn Nets will be seeing what can be done before the deadline. In the spirit of the deadline, there are more details coming out about how much the Houston Rockets wanted one of Brooklyn’s players.

Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports reported on Monday that the Rockets were willing to include guard Jalen Green as part of a trade package for Nets wing Mikal Bridges. It has already been reported that the Nets are not interested in trading Bridges at this time, but it’s interesting to see how much Houston valued Bridges.

This news also continues the point of how much the NBA values someone like Mikal Bridges with what he’s able to do on the court as well as his personality. There have also been reports of the Memphis Grizzlies offering four first-round picks at last season’s deadline in order to acquire Bridges.

To this point, Brooklyn has made it perfectly clear to other teams that they want Bridges on the team moving forward as they see him as part of the main core of their future. Bridges, 27, is averaging 21.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game while shooting 45.5% from the field and 37.1% from three-point land.

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Trade rumors rankings: LeBron James, Dejounte Murray and more

HoopsHype ranks the 16 players who have appeared most often in trade rumors over the previous week, including LeBron James himself.

With the trade deadline now less than a week away, rumors in the NBA world are heating up more and more. Most recently, we saw the Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets agree to a swap of injured players, Victor Oladipo and Steven Adams, a trade that has the future in mind for both clubs.

Today, instead of our usual ranking of five or 10 players, we’re going to rank the 16 players who have appeared most often in trade rumors over the previous week as judged by appearances on our Trade Rumors page.

With so many names and so much scuttle to get through, let’s get right into the action.

Brooklyn Nets have no All-Stars for 2023-24 season

The NBA announced on Thursday that the Brooklyn Nets have no All-Star selections for the 2023-24 season.

The Brooklyn Nets are looking to turn around their season so that they can get back into the Eastern Conference playoff race before it’s too late. As they move forward, they will be doing so without any players who will be going to the All-Star Game in February.

The NBA announced on Thursday who the reserves are for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game that will be played in Indiana on Feb. 18. While Nets guard Mikal Bridges was in the top-10 of the fan voting for the Eastern Conference frontcourt players through most of the rounds, he did fall out of the top-10 in the last round of voting.

No other Net received enough votes to be in the top-10 at any point of the voting so with Bridges not being named to the All-Star Game, that means that no Net will be participating in the event this season. This is disappointing considering that many in the NBA space believed that Bridges could potentially make his first All-Star appearance this season.

This marks the second straight season that no player will represent the Nets in the All-Star Game. To be clear, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving did make the All-Star Game last season due to their performance with Brooklyn, but at the time of the event, both players were representing their respective teams after being traded at the deadline.

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