Six months ago, Josh Hart was sitting at his locker after a brutal loss to the Celtics, pushing back against criticism of his friend Mikal Bridges.
“We don’t care about all that background noise about Mikal, his shot, all that other — we don’t care about it. He puts the work in every day. He’s going to be good. The talk around it is stupid,” Hart said then.
So what Bridges did on Monday — scoring 23 points in the Knicks’ Game 4 win over Boston — meant something to Hart.
“I’m so proud of him as a teammate, as a friend, going through all the adversity that he’s gone through this season,” Hart said late Monday night. “He’s never complained. He always comes to work happy, smiling. He deserves his credit and his flowers.”
After an uneven regular season, Bridges has come up big night after night in the playoffs for the Knicks. Monday night was just the latest example; Bridges had 10 key points in the fourth quarter to help New York build and maintain a lead against Boston.
He also had three steals, seven rebounds, and three assists in the game while defending Boston’s tough wings/perimeter players. He started the game slowly (5-for-14) but hit seven of his final 10 shots, including five in a row at the beginning of the fourth.
“That’s what I love about him,” Tom Thibodeau said afterward. “He played hard the whole game. I thought he had some good looks that didn’t go in, but that didn’t sway him at all.”
Bridges wasn’t the only offseason acquisition to deliver on Monday. OG Anunoby defended well for much of the night and hit several big shots on the way to 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting.
Mitchell Robinson — whom the Knicks elected not to trade at the deadline — had five offensive rebounds (eight overall) in 25 minutes.
Of course, there’s Jalen Brunson — the most important acquisition of the Leon Rose era.
Brunson had another masterclass (39 points, 12 assists, five rebounds). His 18-point third quarter turned the game.
Add it all up and the Knicks are one win away from their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 25 years — they got here with a Game 4 win on the night of the NBA Lottery.
For a long time, the lottery was the most exciting night of the season for Knicks fans. That still holds true today, but for a much different reason.
New York took a commanding 3-1 lead against a Celtics team that dominated them in the regular season.
How is that possible?
“I think just getting better throughout the year…Just takes some time,” Bridges said. “I know everybody wants success early on. But just kept getting better (all season), all of us.”
No one epitomizes that more than Bridges himself. All anyone wanted to talk about this year was the five first-round picks New York used to acquire him.
Now, thanks to Bridges, the Knicks are five wins away from the NBA Finals.
PRAYERS FOR TATUM
Jayson Tatum was in severe pain on the court late in the fourth quarter with what looked like a lower leg injury. The ESPN telecast showed Tatum in the back of the arena on a wheelchair.
Obviously, the Celtics are a much different team without Tatum. But no one wanted to talk about that in the immediate aftermath of the injury. The players’ focus was on Tatum’s health and well-being.
“I just wanted to send prayers out to JT, man. First and foremost,” Brunson said at the beginning of his postgame press conference. “Praying for the best.”
Six months ago, Josh Hart was sitting at his locker after a brutal loss to the Celtics, pushing back against criticism of his friend Mikal Bridges.
“We don’t care about all that background noise about Mikal, his shot, all that other — we don’t care about it. He puts the work in every day. He’s going to be good. The talk around it is stupid,” Hart said then.
So what Bridges did on Monday — scoring 23 points in the Knicks’ Game 4 win over Boston — meant something to Hart.
“I’m so proud of him as a teammate, as a friend, going through all the adversity that he’s gone through this season,” Hart said late Monday night. “He’s never complained. He always comes to work happy, smiling. He deserves his credit and his flowers.”
After an uneven regular season, Bridges has come up big night after night in the playoffs for the Knicks. Monday night was just the latest example; Bridges had 10 key points in the fourth quarter to help New York build and maintain a lead against Boston.
He also had three steals, seven rebounds, and three assists in the game while defending Boston’s tough wings/perimeter players. He started the game slowly (5-for-14) but hit seven of his final 10 shots, including five in a row at the beginning of the fourth.
“That’s what I love about him,” Tom Thibodeau said afterward. “He played hard the whole game. I thought he had some good looks that didn’t go in, but that didn’t sway him at all.”
Bridges wasn’t the only offseason acquisition to deliver on Monday. OG Anunoby defended well for much of the night and hit several big shots on the way to 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting.
Mitchell Robinson — whom the Knicks elected not to trade at the deadline — had five offensive rebounds (eight overall) in 25 minutes.
Of course, there’s Jalen Brunson — the most important acquisition of the Leon Rose era.
Brunson had another masterclass (39 points, 12 assists, five rebounds). His 18-point third quarter turned the game.
Add it all up and the Knicks are one win away from their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance in 25 years — they got here with a Game 4 win on the night of the NBA Lottery.
For a long time, the lottery was the most exciting night of the season for Knicks fans. That still holds true today, but for a much different reason.
New York took a commanding 3-1 lead against a Celtics team that dominated them in the regular season.
How is that possible?
“I think just getting better throughout the year…Just takes some time,” Bridges said. “I know everybody wants success early on. But just kept getting better (all season), all of us.”
No one epitomizes that more than Bridges himself. All anyone wanted to talk about this year was the five first-round picks New York used to acquire him.
Now, thanks to Bridges, the Knicks are five wins away from the NBA Finals.
PRAYERS FOR TATUM
Jayson Tatum was in severe pain on the court late in the fourth quarter with what looked like a lower leg injury. The ESPN telecast showed Tatum in the back of the arena on a wheelchair.
Obviously, the Celtics are a much different team without Tatum. But no one wanted to talk about that in the immediate aftermath of the injury. The players’ focus was on Tatum’s health and well-being.
“I just wanted to send prayers out to JT, man. First and foremost,” Brunson said at the beginning of his postgame press conference. “Praying for the best.”
