Mikal Bridges: A Brief Biography

Born on August 30, 1996, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Mikal Bridges is an American basketball player who plays for the Brooklyn Nets in the NBA.

He played college basketball at the University of Villanova, where he helped to lead the Wildcats to two NCAA championships in 2016 and 2018.

After his junior season at Villanova, Bridges was drafted 10th overall in the 2018 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. However, he was immediately traded to the Phoenix Suns, then to Brooklyn Nets in 2023.

His efficient scoring ability, defensive gameplay and versatility helped the Suns’ to reach the NBA finals in the 2020-21 season.

Early Life

Bridges played his high school basketball in Great Valley High School in Malvern, Pennsylvania. In his junior year, he averaged 20 points and eight rebounds per game. As a senior, he posted averages of 18.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 2.4 blocks and 1.6 steals per game and was named First Team All-Class AAAA.

Bridges decided to play his college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats. In his freshman year, he averaged 6.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game. The Wildcats won the NCAA championship for the first time since 1985. Bridges played a crucial role coming off the bench and scoring 11 points in a Final Four rout of the Oklahoma Sooners.

In his sophomore year, Bridges began to be considered as a lanky forward who could score while playing excellent defense on the other end and often guarding the other team’s best player. For the season, he averaged 9.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game while shooting 54 percent from the field and 39 percent of three-point tries. At the end of the season, he was one of three Big East defensive player of the year honorees.

In his junior year, Bridges scored a career-high 28 points along with six boards and two blocks in an 88-72 victory over Gonzaga. He tied his career-high 28 points in a title game and was named MVP of the Big East Tournament as the Wildcats defeated Providence in a 76-66 overtime. For the season, Bridges averaged 17.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game on 51 percent shooting from the field and 43.5 percent from beyond the arc and was named All-Big East first team.

NBA Journey

Bridges was drafted as the 10th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers and was instantly traded to the Phoenix Suns on draft night.

In his Rookie season, he started in 56 out of 82 games and scored with an average of 8.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game plus his excellent defensive skills made him earn a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

Bridges worked on his game and scored with a better average in the second season of an average of 9.1 points per game and his three-point shooting percentage increased to 36.5%.

Bridges' versatility and defensive play helped the Suns’ to reach the NBA finals where they ultimately lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in six games in the 2020-21 season. He also became a lockdown defender and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.

On feb. 9 2023 Bridges was traded to Nets where he got the nickname Brooklyn Bridges and on his debut against the Philadelphia 76ers he scored 23 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals.

Awards and Achievements

Net Worth

The Nets guard has an estimated net worth of $10 million. Bridges had signed a four-year, $90 million contract extension with the Suns, solidifying his future with the team but was later traded to Brooklyn Nets.

Family

Mikal Bridges was born to parents, Tyneeha Rivers and Raymond Bridges, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Bridges gives all the credit to his mother for his success on and off the court. He has two younger brothers named Korey and Ty-Shon Bridges. Korey played college basketball at the University of South Carolina, while Ty-Shon played college basketball at Creighton University and is currently playing professionally overseas.

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