The New York Knicks looked to be going out sad, down 20 points in Game 3 to the Indiana Pacers with Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns both playing poorly. But New York managed to turn it around, notching their third 20-point comeback of these playoffs to edge out the Pacers, 106-100. The Knicks are alive in this series once again, and Game 5 tickets at Madison Square Garden are already going for thousands of dollars (trust me, I checked).
Mikal Bridges, one of New York’s two marquee offseason acquisitions, has established himself as arguably the team’s second-most important player, hitting clutch midrange after clutch midrange throughout these playoffs and playing solid defense. So far this series, he’s averaging 17.0 points and 2.4 combined steals/blocks per game while making half of his two-point attempts. The Knicks will need another great game tonight in Game 4 if they want to steal home-court advantage back.
New York is a 2.5-point underdog at DraftKings Sportsbook, with the point total set for 220.5. Below, I’ve detailed my favorite prop bets centered around the man ironically nicknamed Brittle despite not having missed a game since high school.
Best Mikal Bridges Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Mikal Bridges 18+ Points (+105)
Of the Knicks’ three wings — Bridges, OG Anunoby, and Josh Hart — Bridges has been the best so far this series. He ranks third on the team in usage rate among the team’s regular rotation players so far this series, more than four percentage points higher than Anunoby and more than double Hart’s. He also leads the team in total minutes played and averages just one fewer front-court touch per game than Brunson. Bridges has even taken on the primary Tyrese Haliburton assignment and has held him to 16 points on five-for-15 shooting in 108.8 partial possessions so far while fouling him just once. New York’s chances start and end with Brunson, but the Knicks wouldn’t be in this position without Bridges.
On offense, he’s largely been ignored, as the Pacers have guarded him with Haliburton, who isn’t exactly known for his defense. Compare that with Anunoby — guarded by Pascal Siakam — or Towns (Myles Turner), and Bridges’ offensive value becomes clear. 46.2% of his shots so far this series have come with the nearest defender between four and six feet away, and he hasn’t been very efficient, posting just a 45.8% effective field goal percentage on such shots. He’s shot just one-for-six from the corner this series after going 93-for-219 (42.5%) during the regular season. Bridges is also shooting nearly 10 percentage points worse from both floater range and the midrange this series than during the regular season. If shooting variance swings back his way, he could be due for an offensive explosion.
Mikal Bridges O1.5 Steals (+160)
One of the major reasons that Indiana is winning this series so far is that it has turned the ball over just 31 times to the Knicks’ 43, winning the turnover battle in both Games 1 and 2. Despite that, Bridges has been an on-ball pest, recording two steals in each of the last two games and two or more in nine of his 15 games these playoffs. Plus, he spends more time on the ball than any other New York defender, so he has the most steal opportunities even though Haliburton is the 17th-least turnover-prone among the 64 players who have averaged at least 30 minutes per game these playoffs. Haliburton has averaged the most total touches and made the most passes of any conference finals participant, giving Bridges plenty of chances to make his impact felt.
