Despite the New York Knicks beating an undermanned Golden State Warriors on Sunday, 110-107, there are some who are concerned by the close result with the opponent missing key players like Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and others. As some could describe the Knicks' win over the Warriors as gritty, some are disappointed, such as Stephen A. Smith, who spoke about how the recent struggles are the fault of Jalen Brunson.

While some may hear that and have an irate reaction, it's not for the reason that involves his impact on the court, which is undeniable, as he scored 30 points on Sunday, but it has to do with Mikal Bridges. There's no denying how disappointing Bridges has been, especially in the last six games, scoring in single-digits in five of them.

Smith would say that Brunson was the reason for New York trading for Bridges in the first place, which led to a massive return, including the team giving up four first-round picks, that has not panned out.

“Why did they do that? They did that because, instead of waiting a year and signing a five-year, $270 million max extension, Jalen Brunson signed a four-year, $156 million extension the year before, giving the New York Knicks a $113 million discount around that range. So what do the New York Knicks do? Obviously, he saves them that kind of money. He did it so they could go get his boy,” Smith continued.

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While Smith would go on to say that Bridges is not a “scrub,” he believes that the move to acquire Bridges and what New York gave up has put a “handicap” on the Knicks.

“You can't let your organization give up that much to get a dude that's gonna ultimately handicap you from building a roster that can compete for a championship,” Smith said.

At any rate, New York is 44-25, putting them third in the Eastern Conference with their next game on Tuesday against the Indiana Pacers.