Mikal Bridges Introductory Press Conference | New York Knicks

Mikal Bridges Introductory Press Conference | New York Knicks

welcome everybody uh we’re here to introduce M Bridges we to start off with an open statement and then we’ll continue with questions uh cool um I don’t know much to say um I’m excited to be here uh excited to be a Nick you know excited to play MSG um excited to see my guy Spike corat um I don’t know just you know just great to be here you know obviously just a team we have and um tibs and everybody um you know I want to thank a lot of people thank Leon thank my agent Sam and Jordan um you know thanks to next organization everybody um you know they’ve been great since I’ve been there so um you know just really appreciative and you know excited to get to work I hate that it’s the summer because you got to wait you know a long time to play but um really excited what was your reaction when you heard the news and and tell me a little about what you think yeah um man I was I was actually not usually I’m home I don’t travel that much but I was traveling and um just crazy when it happened you know I just it was just it was just wild you know just not thinking that was going to happen and you know it was it was just a crazy moment it was really crazy and teammates I mean you know everybody’s great you know I got relationships with a lot of people obviously outside manova guys you know OG and I was excited you know when they signed them back you know I always has been a big fan of OG and I think I’ve you know said a lot of things about him you know when I was in Phoenix and Brooklyn as well so you know got a lot of players Julius everybody so I’m excited besides defens yeah you about that about your Ro how you yeah I mean I think I just you know looking at the team last year and stuff just think I fit him really well you know just and obviously you got you know two All Team guys you know with with JB and Julius so you know how I play basketball just good brand in basketball I know how to you know make winning plays play the right way so you know I think I’m fit in pretty well yeah how you yeah it’s tough man I think it’s you know I feel like it’s my third team now and you know just wherever I go I always feel like I build you know pretty good relationships and you know it’s never it’s never easy to go you know and um it was tough you know I got a lot of relationships that I built over there um you know my teammates you know the organization everybody you know the staff like you know a year and a half I was there and you know I just you know me I talk to everybody so it’s going to I’m going be pretty close to everybody but um it’s sad man I just I miss everybody you know but I’m still in the East so I guess I get to see him four times so Miguel Fred from thetic you had different roles in your career like Phoenix you’re more straight three and dlyn take offens this seems to be provide kind of an in sort of sort of area for you how schematically on the how do you see yourself filling in those gaps and taking parts from your yeah man I think I think it’s not g I think it’s not going to be that hard honestly I think it’s just you know knowing just the brand you know to play here and just playing the right way it’s just just who I am it’s like a natural thing you know so it’s kind of going to USA kind of the same thing where you know obviously USA playing last year the role is going to change and um just being ready I adapt you know you know pretty fast and listen I just want to win and I know the things I got to do you know to help you win and so I’m excitedc York what from your experience in what did you yeah um man I think just just the ability you know having the ball a lot and obviously I didn’t play till how I wanted to play and um just learning from it I think you know last year was a big learning thing and obviously like I said I didn’t play as well as I wanted to but you know seen a lot of things things and being going through that kind of helps me you know you kind of you kind of learn and build from mistakes and all the other things that was going on with coming off and you know maybe bringing two guys and stuff like that but I don’t know man I think it just I just learned from it I think I just kind of you know this is when stuff doesn’t go as well as you want it you know you can’t just you know look at it be upset and you know put your head down I think you just kind of got to look at it and accept what it was and and learn how to grow from it you know I think that’s the biggest thing where Verity hits you got to you got to use it you know you got to use it as fuel use it you know as a a learning experience and um I think that’s what I’m going do I think I’m saying the right thing is my mom’s not on her head every time so I want you wrote Instagram you played is STI with you for a while what went wrong Inn last season um I don’t know man I think we just this a tough year for everybody I think we just you know see we didn’t do what we were supposed to do that’s just on all of us but um like I said I could have been better definitely could have been better but you know just some you got to learn from coms how do you think you guys Stack Up Against I guess the Celtics um Len man I haven’t probably been in this building for about 40 minutes so I just I still got to get to know everybody and stuff like that but it’s a day-to-day process you know obviously there’s a lot of great teams all over but we kind of just got to figure out what we got to do together you know as a team stuff so jayen Brunson and his rise over the past couple years what have you thought of that and what do you think about now teaming up um yeah I mean JB’s just who he is I think um when he first came here and signed here and everybody you know saw his contract and everything and I think a lot of people didn’t understand who he was and I actually kind of tweeted about like y’all must not know who he is you know I know how much he works I know how crazy his father is um is he still in here um so I know I I just know I know how what he’s capable of and um so that was kind of simple for me but yeah you know obviously just JB in general just you know building over the years you know playing in college stuff is just it’s kind of like second nature you know playing basketball with him he plays the right way you know kind of know how to play off of him so you I’m excited play with everybody with him and every else on this team you you us a little that moment for you how did you find out where were you what was the actual imediate reaction um yeah so I was just I was just visiting you know Dallas for a little bit working out with you know finny finny Smith at the time um actually saw one of my close friends Desmond Desmond Bane and um I was actually with him you know he was chilling by his little lake house and uh just chilling with his family and stuff and then the news broke it was pretty I think it was dark outside or something but it was crazy you know they it was wild he just over there just screaming from Far like yo did you see I’m like this is crazy so it was cool and can you tell us you don’t to say every word of it but but Josh did tweet out the FaceTime screenshot of four you guys on FaceTime just what what is that has never that yeah yeah it was cool I mean just you know my phone was blowing up and I saw a call from all them I I all got their number so it was just cool man everybody just geeked up you know Josh of course is going to do that and take a picture and screenshot it so of course I don’t expect nothing less you know from Josh so I knew but you know it was cool I was just I was just obviously that’s cool but you know excited to be a nick man at that at that moment and you know looking at the roster and everybody else we had I was just excited to you know be on this team you guys obviously had a lot of success what can you take from that experience to have that success transl um I mean just just trying to win you know think we all embody you know how to win games and you know all sacrificing to win so pretty much that all right Otis livon CBS 2 um piggy backing off that we’ve seen the success that those guys have had together here with the Knicks was it about that program atova or is it just the players in general that make it sucess that you can add to that this year yeah yeah the program for sure I think just what coach right does you know it’s not just us you know a lot of guys in league as well with Colin Germaine sadik Ohad Kyle like am I missing somebody I probably am but just cam all the guys like there’s there a lot of guys and just just been over basketball just what you ody just middle toughness and stuff like that so but yeah I’m excited to be here what your thoughts about playing at the Garden and do you have a message for the fans um very excited to play at the Garden um kind of thought I was going to you know be here in in 2018 but uh you know that that number nine but that didn’t happen but you know I always love the garden like I said College you know playing there against St John’s and you know the Big East tournament which I think is the best college tournament there is besides the main tournament but um really excited and for the fans yeah I mean you know I’m I hope they’re excited because I am too and I just can’t wait to go out there compete and um just play hard for everybody from Fox 5 just to continue on the college teammates thing um you know last year every time you guys were with Nicks or Nats would play each other you know social media would go crazy you did the podcast and and Josh was always the one kind of forcing the hand what was that Dynamic like though when you guys when you know when you would just talk to them as next players did you ever imagine that you could continue to be your re especially as they added Dante last year like was that ever part of your conversation over the last season yeah I mean as you know about Josh Josh just plays all day you know with Twitter and posting memes and stuff but I mean not crazy it’s just always just catching up and I watch all my all my friends all my old teammates you know wherever team they go to you know watch a lot of basketball so League Pass watch whatever just a little bit easier that you know three of them all same one team so I could just besides worrying about Dante was in Golden State or you know jayen Dallas you know Josh you know wherever that was at New Orleans or whatever but um but yeah just it was just cool it was a cool moment teasing youing last year you do your head that it’s been 40 years tra with the KN and this is all just jokes you have to think no I didn’t no I did not think it’s um yeah it’s it’s surreal but you know it’s just dope to you know dope to be a Nick you know um like I said thought I was going to be here in 2018 and you know I love everything about the team you know tibs and the crowd MSG all that so you know it’s the history I know I think it kind of brings me back to you’ve been a league for a while and you kind of growing up being older you kind of you know you just you be around a lot I feel like now with coming here I just I don’t know makes me feel like like a like a young kid again just with all the memories and you know you think when you think basketball when I was young and think about like the old school like there always the Knicks like that’s what you always think about and think about the MSG and you know the this with the um when the guy made like the the the New York song like the the Nick song so just all that stuff Pix 11 there were a lot of rumors reports whatever you want to call them about you possibly requesting a trade from Brooklyn Sean marks kind of to bed yesterday just wondering if that was something that was floating around your mind is there any truth to that and how were you feeling just in the days about possibly moving out and BR yeah yeah I mean Sean said everything like you know I kind of even try to say as much as I can when I was tweeting about things and my my Instagram post but no that it’s just not who I am um it’s just not it’s just that’s what that’s what it is so I’m happy Sean had a chance to kind of tell everybody but you know no matter what you say they ain’t gonna believe it anyway so I don’t know like I keep telling the truth but so um just just so just to clarify just you tell the truth so you you didn’t push to go to the next or anything like that anything um going back to 2018 I know they piic Kevin Knox right right before you is that what uh yeah yeah how were you I mean that whole did you think you were going to get chosen by the next night or was it before you thought yeah no I think just you know I thought that was two teams was Nicks and Philly um pretty much and but Nicks was nine so kind of at the draft and I was like okay like about to go play MSG like it’s that time you know I love it there like you know me and my agents you know my mom everybody knows like this is this is obviously Philly was meant to be as well but you know as much as I love the guard and I was like you know you just it’s just different it’s I don’t know how it’s just different playing at the guard and playing for the Knicks it just was different and um so I thought there was a chance honestly I really I really thought I was going and you know you kind of know when you’re at the Green Room at the draft you kind of know when the cameras are folling you or your agents might get the call a little bit before and they were up and I just looked at them and they were just like kind of like shook the head I’m like okay three more me me you disagree but I don’t know if youve ever quite played with a one Defender like OG before in terms of that how does how does that affect defensively things that you feel like you’ll be able to do you a that kind of and um I just think I mean I think it’s just obviously is great for the team and you know I think just defensively the schemes kind of makes it easier to read a lot of things but um yeah I mean like I said I’m excited like I told you I was excited when OG signed that a lot of money I tease him I tease him when I see him I always tease him when I see him about that I’m like hey let me hold a dollar but uh yeah just I just know what OG brings and obviously everybody else but just talking about OG right now but yeah that’s my guy you know I think I kind of build a relationship over the years um I think just acknowledging each other and knowing you know what we do for you know our respected teams um but yeah you know you know it’s great to have him out there you obviously never missed a game last year played 83 games what do you make of the idea playing for time what people told you about playing for time I know I see all the jokes I see it all but um I mean it’s great I know tip’s a great coach and I think I mean one thing like who doesn’t want to play you know who doesn’t want to play all the time and um just who he is just how he embodies and how structured he is and you know that’s where I came from that’s high school college you know with Coachman as well just those guys you know I just that’s just you know I I you know fit for that and um yeah I know everybody say all them jokes about tibs and stuff but I’m like y’all must not been watching me in Phoenix because Coach man will play me 48 minutes and the man played me 50 something minutes against Darren Fox and Sacramento and y’all know how fast they play and I was sick so I was sick as a bat literally out there couldn’t breathe and I’m playing 50 something minutes I was on a freaking chair after we won like laid out I don’t think mty knew I was sick either but he was just like oh look look at him that’s what we do I’m like I’m like let’s just get on this damn plane please last one guys um hey my name is Chris from ESPN I want to ask you two things I know ask a little bit about the trolling but I wanted to ask one how did you feel watching your college teammates kind of have so much success last year and kind of have the city so alive last year when you guys were struggling in Brooklyn now what it’s like to come over and two you you were referencing obviously oh that’s a lot of money let me hold the dollar uh the team obviously gave up quite a bit to get you and you know you might not know right now where you stack up with Boston but I think a lot of people the finishing piece so kind of what your thoughts about that and just how much the team wanted to get you all right the first part who you want a couple questions um I could yeah no I good the um say the first part again about just obviously the amount of success oh yeah yeah yeah um I mean happy for those guys but I wasn’t room for them like happy for them you know they stay injury free you know they play well but oh wasn’t I wasn’t really roing for them that much man I I don’t need them to as you can see on the podcast like I don’t need them to always have an edge on me like I just don’t need that and you know they just they play all day they play much but um what else have you said about the Bost thing um yeah I mean honestly just worried about us right now that’s the biggest thing you can’t really you know worry about other teams you kind of got to you know starts in here and starts with everybody in the locker room coaching staff you know medical staff everybody so kind of gota like I said I only been here for about 40 minutes just got to you know build here and you know go from there thanks guys cool thanks guys

Mikal Bridges has his first press conference as a New York Knick, he addresses his excitement to play in The Garden in blue and orange, as well as his excitement to get to work with the team.

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