Knicks New Wing Combo Adds Hidden Bonus

When the New York Knicks traded for Mikal Bridges from the Brooklyn Nets and signed OG Anunoby in free agency, they formed one of the league’s best potential defensive duos.

Bridges and Anunoby are very versatile on the defensive end of the floor and they can cover a lot of ground between the two.

“They provide a luxury Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, one of the league’s top defensive minds, has never had,” The Athletic insider Fred Katz writes. “These are two big wings capable of manning Giannis Antetkounmpo or Luka Dončić. Bridges is superior on smalls. Anunoby has the edge on bigs. But Thibodeau could go any way with those two. When the Knicks face an elite perimeter player, he could alternate Bridges and Anunoby on them, never allowing the star to get comfortable against one guy. He can switch as much or as little as he pleases. Don’t forget, Bridges can fight through screens like few others his size.”

The league is aware of what Bridges is capable of defensively, but he played with some defensive-minus players with the Nets like Cam Thomas and Dennis Schroder, so it didn’t highlight that aspect of his game very much.

Anunoby led the league in steals with the Toronto Raptors in the 2022-23 season and was named to the All-Defensive First Team that same year. While he was omitted from the list this past season because he missed 32 games due to injury, he still remains as one of the league’s best defenders.

Now, Bridges and Anunoby will team up and give their opponents fits all season long. It’s going to take a special offense or a rare off night from both players to have success against the Knicks on the perimeter in the upcoming year.

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