NEW York Knicks new boy Mikal Bridges has revealed he will wear number 25.
It’s the number Bridges, who joined the Knicks earlier this month, wore when he played for the Villanova Wildcats.
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He was also able to use it in his first four NBA seasons with the Phoenix Suns.
But he switched to the number 1 jersey when he joined the Brooklyn Nets in 2023.
The Nets had already retired the No. 25 seed in honor of Bill Melchionni, a star from the team’s ABA heyday.
Bridges joins former Wildcats Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart as the Knicks look for that magic formula to go even further than they did last season.
The 27-year-old announced the news on X, the site formerly known as Twitter, while apologizing to fans.
“Back to number 25…have a blessed day…sorry to those who already purchased number 1 jerseys,” Bridges wrote.
Fans generally aren’t shy about responding to big names, and they certainly weren’t here.
“25 is better in my opinion,” wrote one fan.
“You haven’t looked good in 1 hour, glad you’re changing,” said another fan.
“You have to do what feels right.” a third fan said.
“I’m excited to see you play,” said a fourth fan.
“Go, Knicks. We will have a top team this year,” said a fifth fan.
Bridges admitted there is something special for him about joining the Knicks.
“It’s surreal,” he said. “Coming here makes me feel like a child again, with all the memories.
“When I think about basketball when I was young and old school, it was always the Knicks.
“That’s what you think about. MSG. New York music. All that stuff.”
Inside the future of the NBA?
The operation of the NBA on TNT Sports is in great doubt due to the NBA’s broadcast agreements.
The Emmy-winning sports show is a fan favorite thanks to the likes of Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley.
But TNT’s broadcast deal with the NBA ends after next season and NBC appears poised to take over those rights in a $2.6 billion deal.
If TNT loses its NBA package, it will raise serious questions about the popular Inside the NBA.
One solution could be to recreate the show on another network, which would snatch the rights from the NBA.
The Knicks finished the 2023-24 regular season with a 50-32 record.
They lost 4-3 to the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
New York was down 3-2, but the Pacers came back to win the final two games of the series.
The Knicks will be determined to go further in the 2024-25 season, especially after their old rivals, the Boston Celtics, won a record 18th NBA title.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
