The Knicks Cash In Their Chips To Secure Mikal Bridges in a High-Stakes Trade

Today, with Mikal Bridges on their roster, the New York Knicks are closer to a championship than they have been at any point this century...

Wow. 

Okay, let's start here: The Knicks gave up a lot of draft capital in Tuesday's blockbuster deal with the Nets. A LOT. 

The trade can not be finalized until later this week, so we don't yet know the final particulars (a third team may eventually be included to facilitate the transaction), but ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that New York has acquired Mikal Bridges from Brooklyn in exchange for Bojan Bogdanović, four unprotected first-rounders (2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031), a protected 2025 first-round pick (via Milwaukee), the Knicks' unprotected 2028 pick swap and a 2025 second-round selection.

Trading five first-rounders for any player is a massive gamble. And it seems even more so in this situation, as the player being dealt has never made an All-Star team and is coming off a disappointing season.

Woj accurately wrote that New York "overwhelmed the marketplace" to acquire Bridges. It's hard to imagine any other team in the NBA would have paid such a steep price for a player not generally regarded as a top-tier superstar.

However, team president Leon Rose and the Knicks front office were willing to pony up because they view Bridges as potentially the final piece to a championship puzzle. (Yes, folks, we can now mention "Knicks" and "legit championship contender" in the same sentence.)

Rose and company discovered over the past year that a tough, gritty team centered around Jalen Brunson, a cadre of elite 3-and-D wings, along with some sharpshooters and rim-protectors, could compete for the Larry O'Brien Trophy. 

It had long been assumed that the Knicks would unload their stockpile of draft assets in exchange for a big-name, big-salary, high-scoring star. Instead, New York decided the best way to round out its roster was by adding a two-way defensive demon that fits in seamlessly, both on and off the court.