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While the job isn’t finished yet, the New York Knicks are back in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
After jumping out to a 3-0 Eastern Conference Finals lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Knicks didn’t leave the door open for a potential comeback, obliterating Cleveland 130-93 in Game 4 to finish things off.
Jalen Brunson, as expected, was magnificent for the Knicks all series long, averaging 25.5 points and 7.8 assists per game in four contests. As a result, the 29-year-old star earned the Eastern Conference Finals MVP award, better known as the Larry Bird Trophy.
While Brunson was New York’s best player vs. the Cavaliers, Mikal Bridges, who’s in the midst of completing his second season with the Knicks, played a big-time role in the franchise’s success in the third round of the postseason. The Villanova product contributed 18.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game, and made NBA history that’s never been done before in the process.
“Mikal Bridges is the first player in NBA history to make two separate Finals appearances without missing a single game,” Forbes’ Evan Sidery reported on X/Twitter Tuesday. "709 consecutive games for Bridges without missing any time.”
Bridges’ durability and offensive versatility were key factors in the Suns’ 2021 trip to the NBA Finals, and have obviously paid dividends for the Knicks this year.
The Villanova product came up short with Phoenix five years ago, but given he’s a part of a more well-rounded Knicks squad this time around, it isn't preposterous to suggest he could hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy for the first time in his career.
If it wasn’t already obvious that the Knicks won the 2024 blockbuster trade that sent Bojan Bogdanovic, Shake Milton, Mamadi Diakite, and draft capital to the Nets for Bridges and Keita Bates-Diop, it should be now.
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