Knicks' Mikal Bridges plays 500th consecutive game

Iron Man Mikal Bridges made his 500th consecutive appearance in Sunday’s 100-91 victory over the Magic, a streak that started from his first rookie game with the Suns. It’s among the more impressive accomplishments in the NBA given the recent context. Few players can now manage 82 straight games, let alone 500. Nobody in the league is close. “He played 500 straight?” Karl-Anthony Towns asked in amazement. “Nah, we got to drug test him.”

Source: New York Post

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Bridges said durability was instilled by his mother and Villanova coach Jay Wright, but there were some dicey moments along the way. “One where I was in Phoenix, where I hyperextended my knee,” Bridges explained. “We were going to San Antonio, I was real nervous. It was painful. … Then when I was in Brooklyn, I did something to my wrist. I thought I broke my hand. I couldn’t sleep at night. It was bad. And then when I woke up, it was just my wrist.” -via New York Post / December 16, 2024

But the Knicks were the most divisive front office in the NBA among league executives. Rival executives lauded their work but also had questions about the two big swings the team took this past offseason. For some, the Towns and Mikal Bridges deals pushed them off ballots or stopped them from ranking higher. -via New York Times / December 11, 2024

The Knicks lead the league in time spent up +20 points. They’re up by 20 or more points a whopping 20 percent of game time (the next closest is the Grizzlies at 13 percent). Last year, they were up +20 points only eight percent of the time. The argument in favor of trading for Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges was that it raised the team’s ceiling. Early indicators suggest it did just that. -via Substack / December 5, 2024

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Knicks' Mikal Bridges plays 500th consecutive game