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The New York Knicks made a drastic change earlier this week when they decided that Tom Thibodeau, after leading the team to four winning seasons in the five years he was in charge, was not the right man for the head coaching job moving forward. They justified this move by saying that, for them to take the necessary next step towards title contention, a change was necessary.
It's not quite clear what this means for the Knicks' roster, however. This roster looks like it was built for Thibodeau specifically, and now that he's been relieved of his duties, the other dominoes could begin to fall. The most likely trade candidate among the members of the team's core is Karl-Anthony Towns, with the team reportedly being frustrated over his defensive struggles in the playoffs.
But if push comes to shove and the Knicks decide to remodel the team completely, someone like Mikal Bridges, who will be in the final year of his contract next season, could end up being on the trade block yet again. This is unlikely, as the Knicks paid a king's ransom to bring him in last year. Alas, crazier things have happened in the NBA before. If Luka Doncic can be traded away, then anyone can.
Bridges is the exact kind of player every contending team needs — a versatile wing who can guard multiple positions, hit open threes, and do a little bit of self-creation off the dribble. There should be no shortage of suitors for him in the event that he becomes available.
Here are the best trade destinations for Bridges if the Knicks do decide to blow it all up.
5. Oklahoma City Thunder
There will be no reason whatsoever for the Thunder to make any seismic changes if they manage to go all the way in the 2025 NBA Finals. They have the perfect roster for today's NBA. They have an MVP candidate in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a secondary star in Jalen Williams, a frontcourt that can match up against any other team in the NBA thanks to the Chet Holmgren-Isaiah Hartenstein partnership, and an army of long-limbed defenders in Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, and Cason Wallace who can hound opposing stars and cover a ton of ground.
This is the only reason why the Thunder rank this low as a potential trade destination for Bridges. OKC may be the only team in the NBA who would take a look at Bridges and decide not to trade for him even if given the opportunity. They should be very content with the 3-and-D core they have on the roster.
Nonetheless, if the Thunder end up being upset by the Indiana Pacers much like the Knicks were, they have the draft capital, young talent, and NBA-ready pieces to dangle in a potential Bridges trade. Bridges is a much better offensive player than Dort is and he is in the same league defensively; the only thing is that Bridges is two years older than Dort.
As the old adage goes, the rich only get richer. In this instance, this much is true. But this is far from a realistic scenario, hence their placement of fifth on this list.
4. Philadelphia 76ers
The 2024-25 season was an outright disaster for the 76ers. They began the season with both Joel Embiid and Paul George on the mend, and they simply did not stand a chance to get in the swing of things. George also looked very much washed up for the majority of the season.
And while Embiid's injury woes cast such a dark cloud on the 76ers' future, there are also some very bright spots for them to hold on to. Jared McCain was brilliant before he tore his meniscus, while Quentin Grimes broke out into one of the best volume shooters in the NBA before the 76ers held him out of action for being too good just so they could keep their pick.
If they can get some of their veterans to accept their player options, they could package those players along with a few draft picks (the 2028 Los Angeles Clippers could be of value) as well as McCain in exchange for Bridges. Bridges was a 76ers draft pick before he was traded on draft night, so this would be a long time coming.
Bridges also gives the 76ers some sort of insurance. He never misses any games, unlike Embiid and George, so that should at least give Nick Nurse some peace of mind and some roster stability.
3. Detroit Pistons
The Pistons showed this year that they are a few pieces away from being a legitimate contending team. In the weaker Eastern Conference, if a playoff team manages to stay away from the injury bug, they can end up mounting a deep playoff run. Just ask the Pacers, a team that's remained healthy over the past two seasons, positioning themselves quite well to contend for a championship. And now, they're in the NBA Finals.
Having 3-and-D wings is a necessity for any contending team; the Thunder would not have gotten to where they are now without their defensive core on the perimeter, while the Pacers would have been eliminated a long time ago if it weren't for Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard. The Pistons don't quite have the right pieces around Cade Cunningham just yet.
Ausar Thompson cannot shoot. Tobias Harris, while a helpful combo forward, isn't who comes to mind when the topic of 3-and-D players is brought up. Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway are flamethrowers, but they struggle defensively at times. Jaden Ivey has shown promise defensively, but he is coming off a brutal leg injury.
Bridges is the exact archetype of player the Pistons need. His time moonlighting as the Brooklyn Nets' number-one option expanded his offensive game, so it's not like he'll be 100 percent reliant on Cunningham for his offense, and he'll form quite the menacing defensive duo with Thompson.
Detroit also has plenty of draft capital and a few young players they can dangle to entice the Knicks in a potential trade.
2. Houston Rockets
The Rockets have long coveted Bridges, and they were even reportedly willing to give up Jalen Green, as well as the Nets' very own first-round picks, to bring him in. Bridges would be an offensive upgrade over Dillon Brooks without being a defensive downgrade, and he would be such a perfect fit in head coach Ime Udoka's defense-first system.
They could entice the Knicks in a potential trade using some of their draft capital (they have the Phoenix Suns' future draft picks) as well as some of their young prospects (Green? Jabari Smith Jr.? Tari Eason? Reed Sheppard?). For the Knicks to trade Bridges to the Rockets, however, they will have to hit a reset button of sorts, which they may not be inclined to do especially after Jalen Brunson took a paycut for the team's greater good.
1. San Antonio Spurs
If there's any team that would benefit the most from the addition of Bridges from the Knicks, it's the Spurs. He would be such a huge upgrade over Harrison Barnes, and a quartet of him, De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, and Victor Wembanyama would be such a nice core to build a winning team around.
Perhaps the Spurs could offer a package build around Devin Vassell as well as a few first-round picks to entice the Knicks. But again, the Knicks invested so much in Bridges that they will not be giving him up for pennies on the dollar. Regardless, if San Antonio could pull off this miracle, they should be well-positioned to contend in the West despite how unforgiving that conference is.
