Last season, Mikal Bridges finished in the 85th percentile in field goal attempts at the rim, and his efficiency numbers jump off the page. However, when you dive deeper into Bridges' rim finishing, it becomes clear how misleading they are.
In reality, Bridges often shies away from contact around the rim. He rarely dunks for someone of his size and athleticism, and often chooses to take a short fadeaway rather than going up for a hard layup.
Bridges is a very good player, full stop. Did the Knicks overpay to acquire him from the Nets? Possibly. Still, he provides a lot of value for the Knicks. It isn't his fault what they traded for him; that isn't something he can control. What he can control is being more assertive near the rim in his second season with the team.
Bridges rim attempts are misleading
Last season, according to league tracking data, Bridges attempted 190 field goals at the rim. Of players who reached at least that volume, Bridges was one of only two players to finish at 80 percent or higher. Those numbers all sound fantastic. That said, they need more context.
Of those same players who took at least 190 shots at the rim, Bridges had the lowest percentage of contested attempts. On top of that, he had the 10th highest average distance from the closest defender when attempting a shot at the rim.
Bridges is an exceptional athlete and listed at six feet and six inches tall, though he very well may be closer to six feet and seven inches tall. Despite that, Bridges only attempted to dunk 30 times last season. In the playoffs, Bridges often chose to go for a layup instead of going in for a contested dunk, something that resulted in over 18 percent of his layup attempts being blocked.
The Knicks need more aggression on both ends
If the Knicks are going to get over the hump this season, they are going to need more aggression out of Bridges on both ends of the floor. On offense, they need Bridges to finish with more authority, trade in some of those fadeaways for rim attempts, and dunk like we all know he is able to.
On the defensive side, if he is going to be the primary point of attack defender for the starting lineup, the Knicks need him to be more aggresive fighting over screens and getting into people's chests.