At this time last season, Mikal Bridges gave a disheartened press conference about New York Knicks fans taking over a Brooklyn Nets home game at Barclays Center. One year later, he was on the other end of the crosstown rivalry.

Bridges faced the Nets this weekend for the first time since the blockbuster trade that sent him across the river. He turned in two of his best performances of the season before sellout crowds at Madison Square Garden, averaging 21.5 points on 51.4 percent shooting during a pair of Knicks wins.

Bridges' Brooklyn exit came with controversy. Reports said the 28-year-old informed the Nets that he wanted to be traded to the Knicks — where he would join Villanova teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart — and was willing to play hardball to force his way there. However, Bridges denied the claims in the weeks following the deal.

He told ClutchPoints on Sunday that he only had one regret from his time in Brooklyn.

“The only thing I can say about that is I wish we had more wins. That's pretty much it,” Bridges said. “I control what I can control. But there's a lot of my guys over there. I'm still close with a lot of those people, even in the front office. They're great people, so [I'm] never mad about it with them.”

Mikal Bridges' path from Nets building block to crosstown rival

Brooklyn Nets forward Cameron Johnson (2) puts his arm around New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges (25) during the fourth quarter at Madison Square Garden.
Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Many viewed Bridges as Brooklyn's core building block entering last season. After joining the Nets as the centerpiece of their return for Kevin Durant, he turned in a career-best stretch to close 2022-23, averaging 27.1 points on 48/38/89 shooting splits over 26 games.

However, he came back to earth in 2023-24 and looked growingly apathetic as the year progressed. The Nets struggled as a result, firing head coach Jacque Vaughn at the All-Star break. Despite this, the team still considered moving forward with Bridges as a centerpiece.

“When I was hired, he was on the team. And I had great conversations with him, I had workouts with him, I started to build a relationship with him,” said newly hired head coach Jordi Fernandez. “But the NBA has certain surprises, and things change… The trade was part of our direction with how we want to do things and the plan that we have for building success and sustaining success.”

“Mikal is an amazing player, and what I told him was, ‘There's nothing else better than the NBA than being wanted.' And he was wanted at that time. It's part of the business.”

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Bridges leaving Nets struggles behind in pursuit of championship with Knicks

Bridges' demeanor against his former team was a stark contrast to the second half of last season. Defensively, he looked energized, inspiring hope after a lackluster start to the year. Offensively, his three-point efficiency improved, as he knocked down 7-of-17 attempts (41.2 percent) after shooting 21-of-69 (30.4 percent) over his first 11 games.

Bridges hit the Nets with his patented three-point celebration on Sunday after draining a triple in front of their bench. Cam Johnson, his longtime teammate and “Twin” dating back to their first seasons with the Phoenix Suns, had a four-word response to being on the other end of the move.

“It’s annoying, very annoying,” he said.

Bridges and the Nets are now on divergent paths. The Knicks are all-in on a championship pursuit after trading Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo, Bojan Bogdonavic, six first-round picks and a first-round pick swap to acquire Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns this summer.

Meanwhile, the Nets are expected to continue a teardown this season in pursuit of a top draft pick. Following the Bridges trade, Brooklyn has 15 first-round picks over the next seven years. They have four in a loaded 2025 draft, including their own and the Bucks', which is growing in value amid Milwaukee's 4-9 start.

Arguments between Knicks and Nets fans about who won the deal will continue as the season progresses. Anything short of a championship will be considered a failure for New York, while Brooklyn's grade will remain incomplete for the foreseeable future.