When he first arrived in Brooklyn, Mikal Bridges was a revelation, a 27-year-old with NBA Finals experience and two NCAA titles who had finished second in Defensive Player of the Year balloting. He quickly accepted the role of alpha dog. In his third game vs. the Heat he scored 45 points, his first of three 40-point outings.
For that third of a season, he averaged 27 points and shot 48/38/89 and continued his string of consecutive games, having not missed the call since he was a junior in high school. The trade was not going to erase the memory of the Big Three failure but he proved a nice tonic for Brooklyn Nets fans and while he may not be the player who would lead Brooklyn to the Promised Land, he certainly should be able to attract one who would.