Phoenix Suns: 3 Reasons Extending Mikal Bridges was the Right Move

Why the Phoenix Suns were Wise to Extend Mikal Bridges: He was the team’s best shooter last season

Bridges may have only averaged 13.5 points per game last season, but he was still arguably the team’s best shooter last season, as these numbers explain.

• First on the team in effective field goal percentage (EFG%) at 64.3%
• First in field goal percentage from shots 0-3 feet away from the basket at 80.1%
• First in total corner 3’s attempted and made on the team
• Second in three-point percentage at 42.5% from beyond the arc

Bridges makes the most out of opportunities created by Paul and Devin Booker. He represents an excellent finisher and a three-point shooter. It is unfair to just say he is a “3 and D” wing because he does so much more than stand around in the corner.

He creates the majority of his offense by moving without the ball. That skill is crucial with Booker and Paul dominating the rock. His off-ball cuts fit seamlessly within the confines of the offense established by head coach Monty Williams. This skill was evident even before Paul arrived in the 2020 offseason.

Very few wings can thrive alongside a backcourt as ball-dominant as Paul and Booker. It is a mini-miracle that there are never any spacing issues between Bridges’ off-ball cuts and Ayton’s rolls to the basket. Bridges just has a very high basketball IQ.

So in closing, Mikal Bridges deserved this extension

The Suns core just knows how to play together. The Suns needed to take a page out of the playbook from their arch-nemesis, the San Antonio Spurs, and keep their core intact for a long time. As long as Paul continues to turn back the clock, the Suns will always be in title contention.

So at the end of the day, Robert Sarver needed to make this move to extend Bridges. Hopefully he does the same with Ayton, but for now, this is a win in its own right.