Josh Hart put the debate in the bluntest possible terms.
“The team with the ring.”
That was Hart’s answer to the viral question of who won the Mikal Bridges trade, the 2024 blockbuster that sent Bridges from Brooklyn to New York. And after the Knicks turned that move into the 2026 NBA championship, it’s easy to see why he said it that way.
The Knicks made the trade for one reason: to push a good team over the top. Bridges didn’t need to become a superstar for that gamble to work.
He just needed to fit, defend, and help win games alongside Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby, and Karl-Anthony Towns. That’s exactly what happened, and New York ended the season with the title to prove it.
On the surface, that gives the Knicks the edge. They paid a steep price - four unprotected first-round picks, a protected first-round pick, and a 2028 first-round pick swap - and got a championship out of it.
At the time, plenty of people thought the package was excessive for a player who had never been an All-Star. Five first-round picks is the kind of haul usually tied to a true superstar, not a very good player.
Bridges was not Kevin Durant.
But the story doesn’t end there, because Brooklyn’s side of the deal was never about winning right away.
The Nets were rebuilding, and Bridges was the asset that let them turn the page. In return, they landed a huge stash of draft capital, including four unprotected first-round picks.
That kind of flexibility is gold for a team trying to reset. Brooklyn has already used part of the return to draft Nolan Traore and Ben Saraf, and the future picks from the deal are still there to be used however the franchise sees fit.
Those picks could become players. They could help the Nets move up in a draft.
They could be packaged for an established star. They could simply keep feeding the talent pipeline until Brooklyn finds its next core.
That’s why it feels premature to hand the trade to one side and bury the other.
The results since the deal have been ugly in the standings - 26-56 in Brooklyn’s first season without Bridges, then 20-62 last season - but that was always part of the reset. The Nets weren’t trying to stay afloat. They were trying to build something new.
So if the question is who has the better answer today, it’s the Knicks. They got the immediate payoff and the championship.
But if the question is whether Brooklyn lost the trade, that’s a much harder case to make. The Nets still have years of draft capital from the deal, and what they do with it will decide the final verdict.
Right now, it looks like a win-win. The Knicks got the ring. The Nets got the kind of future flexibility that can shape a franchise for years.
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Nets May Revisit A Familiar Veteran If Their Push Stays Alive
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Lopez is still with the Clippers for now, but his situation could make him a candidate to monitor if the season moves toward the middle and the market shifts. A trade or buyout would open the door for Brooklyn, though nothing has been decided, and for the moment the idea is only that the Nets may have reason to revisit a former cornerstone if their push stays alive. [Read more 🡒]
Nets Scorer Sounds Far More Confident About This Season Than Fans Expected
The Nets have spent the offseason trying to shore up both ends of the floor, bringing in Julius Randle for the front court and rookie guard Mikel Brown Jr. to add another option in the backcourt. The moves give Brooklyn a different look around its roster, and they also put more attention on how the teams top pieces fit together as training camp approaches.
Michael Porter Jr. sounds as if he sees a much bigger ceiling than the outside chatter would suggest, saying the group can beat expectations and even push toward 50 wins. His fit with Randle is part of the intrigue, since their games should complement each other, and the same goes for the encouraging early buzz around Egor Dmin and some of the bench depth that could determine whether Brooklyn turns optimism into something more concrete. [Read more 🡒]
Nets Rebuild Looks Better On Paper But One Doubt Still Lingers
ESPNs latest futures rankings give the Nets a modest boost, slotting them 24th in the league three years from now after finishing 27th in last years outlook. It is a small step, but it reflects the basic shape of Brooklyns rebuild: plenty of draft capital, flexibility on the salary sheet and a roster that is still being built around recent first-round picks rather than proven win-now pieces.
Julius Randle adds a short-term lift to that picture, but he does not fully answer the bigger questions hanging over the franchise. His arrival helps the Nets look better on paper, yet there is still uncertainty about whether his recent performance fits the timeline Brooklyn is trying to follow, or whether the organization is asking its young core to grow up faster than the standings suggest. [Read more 🡒]