On Wednesday night, Mikal Bridges played his 570th consecutive game, extending one of the NBA’s great ironman streaks as he suited up for the New York Knicks. In the modern age of the NBA, this is truly one of the greatest accomplishments imaginable.
Bridges' games played streak stands as the fourth-longest of its kind in NBA history. Mikal is now playing in his eighth season as a professional, and he's reached exactly 82 games played in four of them. Obviously, the current season is still ongoing. As for the other three, he played in every game for the Phoenix Suns in 2019-20 and 2020-21 in COVID-shortened seasons, and in 2022-23 he actually played in 83 games after being traded midseason.
We live in an era defined by load management and increasingly prominent injuries due to the heightened pace NBA games are played at today. But Mikal Bridges is an extremely rare and dying archetype, and he's putting together a streak the likes of which may never be seen again.
Mikal Bridges continues to be an unstoppable ironman
As the old saying goes, availability is the best ability. Well, it's safe to say Bridges has mastered this particular skill. These days, it's common for stars to miss 15 or 20 games per season, and Mikal's ironclad durability has become part of why he's so valuable. Good conditioning, pain tolerance, and a gritty mentality all contribute to him achieving this achievement.
It seems like we used to see players in the 80's and 90's talk about how they viewed each game as something of a responsibility rather than just an option. That's the same mentality Bridges brings to the floor every night. It's a league full of variables, but Mikal being out there every time the Knicks tip off is one of the only true constants.
And for fans of New York, it's a no-brainer that Bridges isn't just available to play every night, he's a major difference-maker for this team. He frequently guards the opposing team's best player, spaces the floor with his shooting, works well off the ball, and just brings a hustle and effort that you don't get from every player.
It's painfully obvious that Mikal Bridges is one of the rare "old school" guys left in the NBA. Teams have more reason than ever to rest their players given the frenetic pace of play and the increasingly common injuries. But that's not going to stop number 25 from being out there every chance he gets.