The New York Knicks were one of the biggest stories of the 2024 offseason, trading for premier two-way wing Mikal Bridges as well as Karl-Anthony Towns, the self-proclaimed “greatest big man shooter” in NBA history to a team that won 50 games in 2023-24.
Their first outing was a dud; a 132-109 defeat to the defending champion Boston Celtics – on ring night – and Bridges was once again a major story due to his shooting form.
The results have not been pretty, either, renewing criticism that emerged during the exhibition slate. After the loss, teammate and Knicks starter Josh Hart rejected the criticism about Bridges’ new-look form, calling the discussion “stupid.”
“Mikal don’t care about anything else. We don’t care about all the background noise about Mikal, his shot,” Hart told reporters on October 22. “We don’t care about it. He puts the work in every day. He’s gonna be good. The talk around it is stupid, and there’s stupidity to it. Because at the end of the day, he’s been a – almost – a 40% career three-point shooter. So, the talk around it is stupid. We’re not really gonna entertain it.”
Bridges acknowledged he has been trying for seven years to get his form back to how it was.
He was a game-worst minus-33, per NBA.com – is a 37.5% shooting from beyond the arc in his career. But he shot 10.5% from deep during the preseason and went 2-for-7 versus the Celtics.
Bridges finished the contest with 16 points on 53.8% shooting from the floor. That was good for the fifth-best efficiency on the team in the game, with bench players Miles McBride (22 PTS, 8-for-10 FG) and Jericho Sims (4 PTS, 2-for-3 FG) raising the bar.
Former Knicks Guard Calls Out Mikal Bridges
Bridges was 0-for-5 in the first half. He went 7-for-8 from the floor – and 2-for-3 from downtown – in the second half. He credited his teammates with finding him and said it was as simple as “making one” basket.
But former Knicks guard Austin Rivers took to social media, questioning why Bridges made the changes to his shooting form.
“Interested to know why bridges changes his shot and what’s the end goal with his mechanics,” Rivers posted on X on October 22. “Usually when a jump shot changes, we remove certain movement to simplify it. Easier to make your form more consistent that way. Why there is an added hitch is bewildering. Hopefully, he crushes it still. Love his game, just confused…thoughts?”
Bridges was the second least efficient among Knicks starters on the night.
Non-Nova Knicks Fail to Deliver in Debut
The Nova Knicks – Bridges, Hart (12 PTS, 4-for-6 FG), and Jalen Brunson (22 PTS, 9-for-14 FG) all ended up with fairly efficient nights.
OG Anunoby (4 PTS, 1-for-7 FG) was the only starter to shoot worse from the floor than Bridges versus the Celtics. Anunoby still added 5 rebounds, 3 assists (to 2 for Bridges), and 1 steal to pad his final line.
Still, it took him one game to match his 2023-24 mark for fewest makes in a single outing.
Anunoby made 43 appearances before going an entire game last season with one field goal. He was 1-for-7 versus the Sacramento Kings then.
Anunoby signed a five-year, $212.5 million contract extension in July. The Knicks did not get as much as expected from Towns, either. The former No. 1 overall pick finished with 12 points on 55.6% shooting (1-for-2 3P) with 7 rebounds and 3 assists.
Towns is in Year 1 of a four-year, $220 million pact.
The big man played 23 minutes with the game out of hand early. But with the two highest total contract values at a combined $85.8 million in 2024-25 salary, they must produce more.
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