Mikal Bridges heads to Manhattan to join his former teammates.
The Brooklyn Nets finalized a deal to trade Bridges to the New York Knicks on Tuesday night, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. In return, the Nets would receive Bojan Bogdanovic and a slew of future draft capital — including four unprotected first-round picks.
The Knicks will send four unprotected picks (2025, 2027, 2029, 2031) to Milwaukee first, and trade an unprotected 2028 pick, a 2025 second-round pick for Mikal Bridges and a 2026 second-round pick, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/E4pTq3wCMP
– Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 26, 2024
The deal will reunite Bridges, the former Villanova star, with other former Wildcats Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo. Bridges spent three seasons at Villanova and won two national championships there.
This is crazy lol
– Mikal Bridges (@mikal_bridges) June 26, 2024
The Nets will have an unprotected first-round pick in 2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031, according to Wojnarowski. They would also receive a protected first-round pick from the Milwaukee Bucks in 2025, a second-round pick in 2025 and a protected pick swap in 2028.
Bridges averaged 19.6 points and 4.5 rebounds last year with the Nets, his first full season with the team after they worked him to a deal with the Phoenix Suns before the deadline in 2023. He has two years remaining on his four-year, $90.9 million deal. an agreement.
Bagdanovic, 35, was traded to the Knicks earlier this year from the Detroit Pistons and had a crucial role in their playoff run — which was cut short in the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight season. He averaged 10.4 points and two rebounds in 29 games off the bench with the franchise.
The Nets, who have since hired head coach Jordi Fernandez, went 32-50 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2018. They are now eyeing a major rebuilding process that, given the picks available to them now, is entirely possible in years. Coming.
Although the Knicks still have important pieces to figure out this season — especially when it comes to OG Anunoby — they’re clearly hoping Bridges’ Villanova reunion can at least propel them to the Eastern Conference Finals after what would have been a 25-year drought. Next spring.
The Nets trade picks with the Rockets, who reportedly want Kevin Durant
The curling was not finished there.
Shortly after the deal was announced, the Nets struck a deal to restructure several picks with the Houston Rockets.
More in the deal: Houston receives the 2,029 most-favored pick of Dallas and Phoenix’s first-round pick and gains the right to swap Houston’s first-round pick for the less-favored Dallas and Phoenix first, according to sources. https://t.co/jUR0f5lSjM
– Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 26, 2024
According to Wojnarowski, this deal was made because the Rockets want to make a move to acquire Suns star Kevin Durant in a future deal. While the Suns have not announced their willingness to sign Durant, who will enter his 18th year in the league this fall, the Rockets now have options to make such a deal.
If not, the Rockets are “determined” to use the Suns’ draft picks to be aggressive elsewhere. The Rockets are said to be “seeking a major upgrade now.” Houston went 41-41 last season and barely missed the playoffs under first-year coach Ime Udoka.
This post will be updated with more information soon.