Like it or not Miles Bridges plays for the Phoenix Suns now, and that is a reality we are all going to have to get used to.
So much has been made about what it meant to trade for the former Charlotte Hornet, that his actual fit and what he will bring to the Suns each night has felt like an afterthought. Bridges actually has plenty to worry about in that department.
Rasheer Fleming and Koa Peat will take minutes off Bridges
The organization didn't give up Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale and for some reason an unprotected first round pick in 2033 to have Bridges come off the bench, so he will be starting at the power forward spot on opening night.
But as the season unfolds, it would not be a shock to see the fit alongside Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green come into question. In theory there is enough spacing and defensive ability to make it work, but when you add Devin Booker to the mix that group does seem a touch small and easy to score on.
Rookie Koa Peat would only make the spacing issues worse, but already at Summer League he showed a real willingness to defend bigger players and use his strong frame to get inside the paint and gobble up rebounds.
Any player who prioritizes offensive rebounding to the degree he does is going to find himself being rewarded with more minutes, particularly when Jordan Ott is their head coach.
Bridges was brought in to take some of the scoring load off Booker and Brooks, but Peat could prove quickly that he is the better defender and so deserving of more run. It gets no easier from there for Bridges, as Rasheer Fleming is also knocking on the door for a bigger role.
He ended his rookie campaign making a couple of 3-pointers in a playoff series versus the Oklahoma City Thunder, and although he's hardly a plus defender himself at this point, there is clear potential to be a scorer at all three levels for the Suns.
He is a four in the more traditional sense, and the Suns have shown in the last couple of seasons their ability to draft the right players for their team. Fleming is coming off a rookie season in which he only improved (despite limited run), and has followed that up with clear improvements made to his game in Las Vegas.
The Suns are trying to win now and Bridges in theory helps make that happen. But they would be foolish to shelve Fleming completely when he clearly has the potential to be a long-term solution for the franchise.
Miles Bridges, you have been warned. This is not going to be easy.
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