Knicks’ Mikal Bridges Drawing Jrue Holiday Comparisons

Former Boston Celtics continues to raise Bridges with New York Knicks fans … in this case, a bit literally.

The ESPN analyst has been one of the biggest endorsers of the modern Knicks and continued that trend during Monday’s edition of “NBA Today.” Asked which newcomer will “move the needle” for his team the best in this coming season, Perkins hardly hesitated to bring up Mikal Bridges.

“He could be what Jrue Holiday is for the Boston Celtics,” Perkins explained. “That’s how elite this young man is on both ends of the floor. We saw (that) when Phoenix made their run with Devin Booker and (Chris Paul) to the NBA Finals (in 2021). Just remember, a couple seasons ago, he averaged 26 points (with the Nets).”

“Now I know he only played 27 games, but still, we’re at a point now where I don’t even look at Mikal Bridges as a role player. He’s a guy that’s an All-Star caliber player and I think that was the best addition this offseason.”

Perkins further lauded Bridges as a “Tom Thibodeau-type of guy,” hinting that his uncanny propensity to constantly take the floor would make him an instant favorite of the Knicks’ head coach. Bridges has yet to miss a game since entering the Association out of Villanova in 2018 and even played 83 games when he was shipped from Phoenix to the Brooklyn Nets in 2022-23.

The Knicks gave up a hefty haul for Bridges but it’s clear that his Villanova connection, which has him reuniting with three other fellow former Wildcats (Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo, Josh Hart) wasn’t the only reason why he was brought in.

The 28-year-old has firmly established himself as one of the most reliable two-way talents in the Association, notably landing first-team All-Defensive honors in 2021-22, which also saw him place second in the Defensive Player of the Year vote behind only Marcus Smart.

Thibodeau has long valued players with such skills and Bridges has acquiesced to the tune of 19.9 points per game over the last two seasons. As Perkins mentioned, he put up 26.1 during an initial 27-game showing with Brooklyn after his trade.

Equally reliable in such a role is Holiday, who joined Perkins’ original NBA employers in Beantown last season. While Boston is headlined by talents such as Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, it did not return to the champions’ slot until Holiday’s arrival. Holiday earned second-team All-Defensive honors en route to the Larry O’Brien Trophy hoist, his second after previously doing so with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021.

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