Mikal Bridges (born August 30, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns.
He played college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats aiding them win the national championships in 2016 and 2018.
Bridges was selected with the 10th pick by the 76ers in the 2018 NBA Draft before being traded to the Suns on draft night.

One fun fact about Mikal is that he loves to eat at Chipotle.
He even got himself his own Chipotle membership card which allows him to order one free meal a day.
He is nicknamed “the Warden” due to the fact that he locks down the opposing team’s best players so well on defense.

Early Life of Mikal Bridges

Raised by a single mother who gave birth to him at 19, Mikal Bridges is the son of Jack Bridges and Tyneeha Rivers.
His mum used to work for the Philadelphia 76ers
He grew up in Overbrook, Philadelphia, and its environs.
Later, he moved to Malvern, Pennsylvania in middle school.
His second cousin is former La Salle player Tyrone Garland.

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Career

Bridges attended Great Valley High School in Malvern, Pennsylvania, where he was coached by Jim Nolan.
He began to get serious about basketball in his sophomore year when he had a growth spurt.
He was ranked by ESPNU as the 82nd best player nationally, and committed to Villanova in June 2013.

He claimed the Julius Erving small forward of the year award at his time at Villanova.
In his first year with Villanova, he appeared in all 40 games for the Wildcats.
On draft night, Bridges was compared to NBA veterans Robert Covington and Trevor Ariza.

Bridges recorded a new career-high of 34 points in a 125–117 win over the Indiana Pacers on 9th January, 2021.
He also helped the Suns start their season with a 7–3 record, their best 10-game start to a season since 2009.
He helped the Suns to the playoff finals last season where they lost 4-2 in the series to Giannis and the Bucks after Suns took a commanding 2-0 lead.

Trade to the Suns

On April 10, 2018, Bridges announced his intention to forgo his final season of collegiate eligibility and declare for the 2018 NBA Draft, where he was the 10th selection in the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers.

He was later traded to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for the 16th pick, Zhaire Smith, and an unprotected 2021 first round pick.

At the time of the draft his mum used to work for the 76ers, hoping her son would end up playing for his home town, it came to pass but the dream didn’t last long either as he was later on traded to the Suns.

Mikal Bridges Wingspan

He has an incredible wingspan of 7 feet (2.15m) for a player just 6 foot 6.

Is Mikal Bridges brother Miles Bridges?

Many have speculated his relation to Hornets wingman Miles Bridges but then again Mikal Bridges and Miles Bridges share the same last name, but are not brothers.

Contract

On October 17, 2021, Bridges and the Phoenix Suns agreed to a 4 year $90 million rookie extension.

Jersey

He wears the number 25 jersey for the Suns.