Fans have responded strongly to Mikal Bridges’ explanation for the Phoenix Suns’ loss to the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2021 NBA finals. Bridges, along with his New York Knicks teammates, has recently started a podcast called ‘The Roommates Show’. In the second episode, they invited Brooklyn Nets Forward to be a guest. During the conversation, Bridges discussed various topics, including his experience of being traded from the Suns and losing the NBA championship in 2021.
Bridges admitted that the Phoenix Suns underestimated the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2021 NBA finals, which ultimately led to their defeat. He pointed out that the competition in the Western Conference is generally tougher than in the Eastern Conference. Despite being the winners of the Western Conference finals, the Suns did not take the finals against the Bucks seriously. Bridges revealed that after winning the first two games and starting the series with a 2-0 lead, he and his teammates believed that it would be easy to secure the championship. However, everything changed from Game 3 onwards.
The Milwaukee Bucks won four consecutive games and ultimately clinched the championship in six games. Bridges expressed his shock at the Bucks’ dominant performance. It was the second NBA championship for the Bucks, and Giannis Antetokounmpo won his first finals MVP award.
Upon learning about Bridges’ mindset and the Suns’ underestimation of the Milwaukee Bucks, fans were both shocked and upset. They believed that such a mindset was detrimental to playing in the finals. Fans expressed their dissatisfaction on social media, criticizing the Suns for not taking the finals seriously and attributing their loss to overconfidence.
Many fans emphasized that underestimating a player like Giannis Antetokounmpo was a grave mistake. They questioned how the Suns could have such a mindset in the NBA finals, which is considered the biggest stage in the league. Some fans even suggested that Bridges should have waited until his retirement to make such statements, as they viewed his mindset as disrespectful.
The fans’ disappointment was further fueled by the fact that since 2021, the Suns have not come close to reaching the finals or the Western Conference finals. In February 2023, Bridges was traded from the Suns to the Brooklyn Nets, marking a significant change in his career.
According to the Source firstsportz.com