Mikal Bridges' future with the Knicks is no longer in question, as the team has signed the veteran guard to a four-year, $150 million contract extension, sources confirmed to SNY.
Bridges was eligible for a four-year extension worth as much as $156 million. By agreeing to a deal at $6 million less than the max, Bridges gives the Knicks some financial flexibility in an era where every dollar counts for contending teams.
That future financial flexibility was an important part of the deal for the Knicks and Bridges, per sources familiar with the matter.
“He wants to be here and wants to win here,” a league source told SNY.
Bridges, who joined the Knicks last summer in an offseason trade with the Nets, averaged 17.6 points with 3.7 assists and 3.2 rebounds across 82 regular season games in 2024-25. The 28-year-old then scored 15.6 points on average in the playoffs, helping the Knicks make a run to the Eastern Conference Finals. He had an up-and-down regular season but made several clutch plays for New York in the postseason.
The Knicks like how Bridges (who turns 29 next month) fits the timeline of their other top players. Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Mitchell Robinson are all 30 or under. Brunson, Towns, Bridges, Hart and Anunoby are all under contract through 2026-27.
The Bridges extension, which was first reported by ESPN, kicks in next season. If he’d waited to become an unrestricted free agent, Bridges would have been eligible for a deal as long as five years and for much more total money.
Brunson took a significant discount by signing an extension last summer. His decision to sign the extension instead of waiting until free agency will help the Knicks avoid onerous penalties in the second apron. Bridges’ discount will also, to a much lesser degree. But every dollar counts for teams like the Knicks, who want to contend. By having a team salary under the second apron, the Knicks will have more tools to acquire free agents and the flexibility to make trades that they wouldn’t have if they are over the second apron, which is $222 million in 2026-27.
According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, the Knicks currently have $18 million in space under the second apron heading into the summer of 2027.
The Knicks sent five first-round picks to the Nets last summer to acquire Bridges. So they needed to either extend him or put him in a trade that netted a significant return. Now that Bridges is signed to the extension, he is ineligible to be traded for six months.
