BOSTON (AP) — Mikal Bridges was considered a defensive star and complementary offensive player in Phoenix before abruptly having his five-year run there ended…
Mikal Bridges was considered a defensive star and complementary offensive player in Phoenix before abruptly having his five-year run there ended when he was shipped to Brooklyn as part of the trade that sent Kevin Durant to the Suns.
Bridges gave his new team another glimpse of the go-to potential he could grow into.
Bridges scored 38 points and the Nets overcame a 28-point deficit to stun the Boston Celtics 115-105 on Friday night.
He has reached 30 or more points in three of Brooklyn’s last six games. Bridges also had 10 rebounds, playing nearly 43 minutes.
“I think we kind or realized over a couple of games that offense wasn’t really our problem,” Bridges said. “I feel like our offense is pretty good. But our defense, we got stops and stayed together possession-by-possession. … We just kept and stayed together.”
It was Brooklyn’s first victory over Boston in four meetings this season.
Bridges played through pain in the second half after knocking knees with Derrick White, hitting on the same spot he did in a similar collision with Jalen Brunson in Wednesday loss to the Knicks.
“I think when I got traded it was kind of at the right time because when everybody was out in Phoenix I had to take up another role offensively and be more aggressive,” Bridges said. “By the time I got traded I was in a great rhythm and was confident.”
Fellow former Sun Cam Johnson added 20 points. Dorian Finney-Smith finished with 17.
It is the largest comeback by a Boston opponent since the Los Angeles Clippers also rallied from 28 down to beat Boston 123-112 at TD Garden on Feb.
