Nets’ Mikal Bridges earns preseason praise from NBA general managers, ESPN player ranking
Recognition for the Nets’ Mikal Bridges continues to pour in from beyond Brooklyn.
The fast-rising forward earned preseason praise this week from NBA general managers on their annual survey and from the dozens of journalists and analysts who vote on ESPN’s yearly player ranking.
The survey found Bridges received 13% of the general manager votes for the NBA’s best perimeter defender, trailing only the 50% received by newly acquired Boston guard Jrue Holiday. Bridges ranked fourth in the category on last season’s survey, which came out while he was still a member of the Phoenix Suns.
Bridges also ranked second on this year’s survey for the player best at moving without the ball, again getting 13% of the votes. And Bridges received 7% of the GM votes for the league’s most versatile defender, tying him with Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr., the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, for fourth place.
The 6-foot-7 Bridges was listed as “also receiving votes” in the versatile defender and moving without the ball categories last year.
This year, Bridges also received votes for the NBA’s most versatile player; the player most likely to break out this season; and the most underrated acquisition.
Bridges, 27, was a revelation after joining the Nets in the February trade that sent Kevin Durant to Phoenix, averaging 26.1 points over 27 games – nearly nine points higher than his previous career-best mark.
The nearly 150 voters for ESPN’s NBArank, which came out Wednesday, certainly took notice, listing Bridges as the 33rd-best player in the league – a spot ahead of former Nets star Kyrie Irving.
“Already valuable for his defense and spot-up shooting, Bridges added shot creation – which accelerated after he was traded to Brooklyn,” wrote ESPN’s Kevin Pelton, who mentioned late-game scoring as an area where Bridges can improve.
Bridges finished ahead of Julius Randle, a two-time All-Star with the Knicks, whom ESPN put No. 45 on its NBArank. Fellow Knicks star Jalen Brunsion – a former teammate of Bridges at Villanova – finished one spot ahead of him at No. 32.
Like Brunson, Bridges has never been named an NBA All-Star. Bridges was often no more than the fourth scoring option on a Phoenix team that also featured Devin Booker, Chris Paul and DeAndre Ayton.
The Nets are banking that Bridges continues his ascent during a 2023-24 season in which the team prioritizes defense and effort without a clear-cut superstar like Durant or Irving on the roster.
Nets coach Jacque Vaughn has referenced a plan to put more on the forward’s plate this season, which Bridges says he embraces.
“It’s a new role, and personally, I think I can fulfill it and succeed in it, just who I am as a person,” Bridges said this month at the Nets’ media day.
“[I’m] willing to take every bullet and losing, take the blame, I’m ready for all that. … Who wouldn’t want this? Who wouldn’t want this type of pressure, this type of expectations? If you really love the game and you really wanna be the best you can be as a player, you would want this type of feel where, OK, you’re the main guy … and everything is on your shoulders.”
