Possible Hawks trade target Mikal Bridges traded to Knicks in mega blockbuster deal

The first blockbuster trade of the offseason involving major draft capital is finally here.

The New York Knicks finally reunited the Villanova trio by trading for Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

To acquire Bridges, New York gave up Bojan Bogdanovic, four unprotected first-rounders, two pick swaps and a second-rounder. This is an absolute success and I think it’s probably one of the best packages the Nets could have gotten for Bridges.

Make no mistake, Bridges is a great player. He played a vital role in the Suns’ 2021 Finals run and is an excellent defender who creates his own shot. Last season, he averaged 19.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists on 52.1% from the field and 37.2% from three. He’s a true volume shooter, hitting that three-point percentage on seven attempts per game.

His fit in New York is pretty ideal. He fits in perfectly as a third scoring option behind Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson – it’s a more improved version of what they got from Bogdanovic. However, I think this is a deal the Hawks probably feel good about not making.

Atlanta didn’t have the capital to do it responsibly. Even if they gave up the first overall pick, they would have effectively crippled Bridges’ future. He’s just not the type of player Atlanta could do that for. The cost of putting him next to Jalen Johnson would simply be too high.

Maybe they could have gotten Bridges if the Nets liked Dejounte Murray or Trae Young, but there are very few other players Atlanta could have easily traded for Bridges. Hunter probably wouldn’t be enough of a trade sweetener for New York and Johnson has too high a ceiling at the moment. This certainly makes New York a more dangerous playoff opponent, but it wasn’t a missed opportunity for the Hawks. However, this completely rules out the Nets as suitors for the services of Young or Murray.

I’m very interested to see if this makes any of the other players on Brooklyn’s roster more available. Someone like Dorian Finney-Smith is a good rotational wing who could bolster Atlanta’s rotation. It wouldn’t surprise me if Brooklyn trades more veterans as it enters a true rebuild.