This is exactly what the Brooklyn Nets and their 17 fans feared. (Sorry, that was indeed a cheap shot, particularly at a time when cheap shots are not required. Then again, plenty of cheap shots have flown toward the man of the hour and his new team in the past several months.)
Dec. 25, 2024: Final
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When the New York Knicks sent Bojan Bogdanovic and an absurd five first-round picks to Brooklyn for Mikal Bridges this past July, no world could dare dream of hosting a trash-talking-free world.
After all, Leon Rose had just pulled off a mega-deal with the Knicks’ closest geographical rival—the Brooklyn Nets—the same franchise that pushed hard for Big Apple supremacy upon its move from New Jersey. Plus, it didn’t help that Bridges started the season relatively slow, as he and his Villanova teammates couldn’t quite figure out how this fresh ship would steer.
Thirty games into the season would have us be convinced otherwise, however. Thanks to the Knicks’ 117-114 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Christmas Day, the five-borough trash-talking is much more prevalent in just one direction.
On this day, Santa Claus took a back seat while Mikal Bridges took the reins of his four-supporting reindeer at Madison Square Garden.
Bridges, 28, scored a season-high 41 points with extreme confidence. In fact, at some points in this game, when the Knicks as a whole couldn’t buy a bucket, it was the former Net who put the team on his back (shoutout to the fictional version of one Darren Sharper; most definitely not the genuine article, for obvious reasons).
Bridges shot a ridiculous 17 of 25 from the floor, including 6 of 9 from downtown. He also chipped in with 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals (to go along with a +8 plus-minus number).
From the opening tip-off, this game felt a bit strange. Although the Knicks were never too far behind, at times, the Spurs enjoyed solid leads that felt like a sheer stranglehold was near.
Young Victor Wembanyama took on the starring role for most of the content, in fact. The 20-year-old, 7-foo-3 unicorn dominated Tom Thibodeau‘s defense for most of the afternoon.
Wemby finished with a game-high 42 points on 16-31 from the floor and 6-16 from three-point range. Oh yeah, he also pulled down 18 boards while adding 4 assists and 4 blocked shots—a lot of which came when Karl-Anthony Towns was forced to the bench due to foul trouble.
San Antonio owned an 8-point lead at halftime, but New York battled back in the third quarter. Bridges, however, led the Knicks to a 37-25 advantage in the third quarter, which propelled them in the final frame.
The key moment came late in the fourth quarter, as is usually the case in the NBA. Clinging to just a one-point lead, Bridges drilled consecutive jumpers to put his team up five with just 1:18 remaining.
Despite playing just 30 minutes, Towns finished with 21 points and 9 rebounds. Point guard Jalen Brunson may have taken a backseat to Bridges in the scoring department, but he still managed 20 points on a rough-shooting day (7-23).
A tip of the cap needs to be sent in Josh Hart‘s direction, as his 12 rebounds were crucial in the Knicks win. Wemby did serious work in the paint and on the boards, helping to impact the Knicks’ drivers and slashers.
A key Hart offensive board late in the fourth quarter allowed Knicks fans not to have to deal with a situation where a Spurs’ three could tie the game. Hart also—as he tends to do—hit a monster three-pointer in the fourth quarter when his team needed it most (down five points).
The New York Knicks (20-10) have now won five straight games and trail the Atlantic Division-leading Boston Celtics by just two games. They now turn their attention to the Orlando Magic for a Friday night road affair (tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET).
