Phoenix Suns: Mikal Bridges, the rookie who needs more love

The Phoenix Suns are rightfully excited about star Devin Booker and rookie phenom Deandre Ayton, but Mikal Bridges might round out their Big 3.

The Phoenix Suns desperately needed a win Sunday night to snap their seven-game skid, and as has usually been the case since he first joined the franchise, it was Devin Booker who carried them home.

Scoring 14 of his team-high 25 points in the fourth quarter, Booker’s late rally helped the Suns climb back from a 12-point deficit in the final frame, improving the team’s record to a still unsightly 2-7 overall.

It’s been a rough start for Igor Kokoskov’s squad, which has been trying to implement a brand new system under a first-year head coach with a bunch of new veterans, no starting-caliber point guard, a banged up star player and a 36-year-old Tyson Chandler, who just got bought out.

Even so, with all the moving pieces and constantly shifting lineups, it was encouraging to see Booker deliver for the Suns in the clutch, putting them up two points with a big-time bucket late in the game, and then responding with the game-winner after Mike Conley had tied it up:

However, as much as Devin Booker was the man of the hour, and as much as Deandre Ayton‘s eye-popping numbers have the most optimistic of fans dreaming of “Kobe and Shaq 2.0” and the most pessimistic ones anticipating at least a Rookie of the Year campaign, there’s another Suns youngster who deserves a high amount of attention moving forward.

That rookie is Mikal Bridges, the somewhat overlooked, other top-10 pick Phoenix added in the most recent NBA Draft.

Although he’s only averaging 7.2 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 17.2 minutes per game, Bridges’ early impact extends beyond the stat sheet. Outside of Trevor Ariza, he may already be this team’s best small forward.

"“A lot of things that Mikal is doing for us you can’t put in the stats,” Kokoskov said. “When he makes shots it’s obvious, but he’s a very reliable player. He’s very solid and very mature for his age. Not just when it comes to the game plan and execution, but overall, when it comes to the professionalism and everything else.”"

Sunday night, Bridges had the best performance of his young career, tallying 14 points (two off his career high) and two steals, marking the fifth game this season he’s finished with two steals. He was extremely efficient too, making five of six shots overall and canning four of his five 3-pointers.

Even better, three of those triples came in the fourth quarter, with his final 3-pointer tying the game at 98 with 2:27 to go. He didn’t even seem to notice the two defenders that came flying at him to contest the shot.

"“Nah, not really,” he said. “I was ready to shoot it, my eyes were already locked on the rim before the ball even came to me, so I was all ready to shoot it.”"

Bridges’ two-way play and ability to spread the floor — his future calling card with this team — is what earned him late-game minutes over Josh Jackson, and nobody seemed to have missed it.

"“It’s really big, to be playing crunch-time minutes like that your rookie season and performing, it’s really special,” Booker said. “I was saying it postgame, I love being on the floor with him. He does everything it takes to win. He spaces the floor, he defends, he’s long and lanky and has really good instincts that not a lot of other people have. He was well-coached at Villanova and they know how to win.”"

Booker was right to notice Bridges’ crunch-time impact. With Phoenix trailing 89-77 with 8:50 left in the game, the Suns had yet to score a single point in the frame. From there, only three Suns contributed to the team’s 25 points in the fourth: Ayton with two points, Book with 14 … and Bridges with nine.

"“He’s a young player who we felt comfortable playing crunch time,” Kokoskov said. “We had no doubt that he should be on the court when the game was on the line.”"

The confidence in Bridges is striking, considering it was only two weeks ago Kokoskov was limiting his minutes in fear that he’d be putting too much pressure on the rookie, thinking he wouldn’t be able to change the course of these games.

The Suns are quickly singing a different tune, which makes sense when one realizes he’s got a plus/minus of +1.9 (no small feat on a team with a 2-7 record and a -12.2 point differential), and that Phoenix has been a +17 in his 155 minutes on the floor.

Shooting a tidy 50 percent from the floor, 41.7 percent from 3-point range and 81.8 percent from the foul line, Mikal Bridges is already too good to be left on the bench, especially with both Josh Jackson and Ryan Anderson struggling in the early going.

When asked if Bridges’ rookie situation of “too good to be sitting” reminded him of anyone, Devin Booker could only smirk while answering.

"“When you’re that talented and you’re that good of a player, it’s hard to keep you off the court,” he said. “So yeah, I’ve seen it before. He has what it takes and I keep talking about his will to win and just doing the little stuff out there that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet. Obviously the big shots are a big help too, but he’s just always in tune to the game.”"

Though his 3-point shooting will be instrumental for the team’s spacing in the future and his ceiling as a scorer remains untapped in the early stages, both Bridges and Kokoskov agree his focus must remain on the defensive side of the ball.

For a Suns team ranked 28th in defensive rating with two stars who are not exactly known for their prowess on that end, focusing on defense makes sense.

"“He’s got to be a better defender and take that challenge to contain the ball better, to guard,” Kokoskov said. “And he will, because he’s tough on himself.”"

"“It means a lot,” Bridges said of his crunch-time minutes. “I work hard, and to be out there and just keep me out there, I’m trying to defend as hard as I can. That’s why I want to be out there: to defend and try to lock up.”"

Nine games is a tiny sample, and as Mikal Bridges’ minutes increase, his plus/minus and Net Ratings will inevitably take a hit on a losing team. However, as the Suns look to build around their franchise pillars in Booker and Ayton, it’s becoming clear this 3-and-D wing could quickly become a crucial part of the equation … and maybe even round out their Big 3 when all is said and done.