Down the stretch of the New York Knicks' 112-109 road victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on January 24, 2026, head coach Mike Brown benched starting wing Mikal Bridges in favor of Landry Shamet in the fourth quarter. It was the first of seven such pivots away from Bridges, who had just signed a four-year contract extension worth a reported $150 million, during the regular season.
The results of the 2026 NBA Playoffs gave fans more than enough reason to justifiably change their tune. Bridges' defensive contributions against star guards like Tyrese Maxey and Donovan Mitchell were much more relevant than a lack of consistent offensive success amid a historically dominant postseason run.
Now that the Knicks are trying to become the first NBA Champions to successfully defend their title since the Golden State Warriors eight years ago, the bar seems to be getting higher. While Brown has continued to trust the wing with a starting role, he's been hooking him earlier in games than he did last season.
It may frustrate fans to see Bridges get the short end of the proverbial stick when the entire starting lineup has been struggling thus far. Ultimately, this level of dedication to the team's championship standard is what it's going to take for the Knicks to make it back to the NBA Finals in such a talented Eastern Conference.
Brown should be strict as Knicks look to break NBA's no-repeat trend
Last season, it took several months before Brown turned away from Bridges entirely to close games. Shamet's excellent play off of the bench included consistently remarkable effort and 3-point accuracy, making the off-ball swingman a natural fit with the rest of the team's starting lineup.
It may have also helped that Bridges publicly advocated for Shamet to play more during the 2024-25 season, telling reporters that he wished former head coach Tom Thibodeau would trust his reserves more — even if it came at the cost of his own playing time.
This year, Brown hasn't wasted time taking advantage of the literal championship standard he's now able to enforce within his group. Typically, when the coach turns to Shamet, he's only relieving Bridges of however much of his fourth quarter shift remains.
Against the Boston Celtics, Bridges sat the final 8:25 of the contest. In the team's first game of the season against the Chicago Bulls, though, Bridges left the game for the final time with 8:09 left in the third quarter.
It was a similar situation against the wing's former team in the Brooklyn Nets on Monday night; Bridges never returned to the court after being replaced by Jordan Clarkson with 8:44 to go in the third quarter at Madison Square Garden.
Fans should feel comfortable betting on Bridges, a proven playoff riser, to pick things up. Brown has said himself that the wing just has to continue playing through his early shooting struggles. It's early into this title defense for any changes to the starting lineup. The Knicks' willingness to bench players — even a starter like Bridges — this early in the season, though, will be worthwhile if it sends the right message.
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