In just his third game on the court for the Brooklyn Nets, Mikal Bridges recorded a career-high 45 points against a talented Miami Heat team.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!And he did this while guarding six-time All Star Jimmy Butler for the majority of the night. Butler was held to just 13 points, shooting just 4/11 from the field.
While many Suns’ fans were excited to see their former rising star find his footing in Brooklyn, some looked at the performance with a completely different point of view.
Kendrick Perkins, a former NBA player who is now an analyst, took to Twitter to express his thoughts on the situation.
It’s a difference between playing the right way and waiting your turn and being held back!
Mikal Bridges with a smooth 45 piece wing dinner, 8 biscuits and 5 apple pies. Phoenix was in the damn way! Carry on…
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) February 16, 2023
Perkins suggested that the Suns were holding Bridges back during his five seasons with the team.
As expected, this comment was followed by a boatload of backlash, and rightfully so.
To suggest that the Suns did not allow Mikal Bridges to play to his full potential is quite an outrageous statement to make, and even Bridges would likely disagree that Phoenix did not use him correctly.
Over the past two seasons, Mikal did not miss a single game with the Suns, proving how valuable he was to the team.
Additionally, Bridges was already well on his way to having a career-defining season, as the 26-year-old is averaging a personal best of 25 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game.
Not to mention, while with the Suns, Bridges was on the court at the same time as three-time All Star Devin Booker, 12-time All Star Chris Paul, and, of course, Deandre Ayton.
It is not as if Phoenix limited Mikal’s ability, rather, he did not have the opportunity like he has on the Nets to lead the scoring charge.
When looking at Brooklyn’s updated starting roster without Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, no one is averaging over 20 points per game, and a total of zero All Star appearances are included.
The circumstances for Mikal Bridges to breakout on this roster are perfect, and fans across the valley are loving the success that he is having so far in his short time on the Nets.
But to claim that Phoenix was limiting Bridges’ abilities is extremely far-fetched.
