The Bridges File
- 10th overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft
- One NBA All-Defensive First Team selection, 2022
- Two NCAA championships with Villanova, 2016, 2018
- Won the Julius Erving Award, 2018
- One First-team All-Big East selection, 2018
- One Big East Co-Defensive Player of the Year award, 2017
- One Big East tournament MVP award, 2018
- Nicknamed "The Warden"
You can take Mikal Bridges out of Philly...
Phoenix Suns phenom Mikal Bridges has made a name for himself in Arizona, but the East Coast knows him well.
Bridges grew up in Philadelphia, where he became a local high school star. He would go to school at the nearby Villanova University and win two national championships. He was even drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers.
Unfortunately, the match dissipated faster than the Philadelphia Flyers' playoff hopes. Bridges was traded away from the only city he'd ever known.
He may not root for the team that gave him hope and then ripped him away from his family, but he still loves his Philadelphia Phillies, as shown during their run to the 2022 World Series.
"I've always been in love with it," he said, when asked about his Phillies fandom.
The Arizona Diamondbacks even had a night to celebrate Bridges when the Phillies came to town. Under his Arizona jersey, a Philadelphia t-shirt, a stunt Diamondbacks staffers were thankfully aware of. His Twitter timeline during their playoff run was just like the rest of the fanbase: stressed, excited, and at the edge of his seat.
Bridges' love for the Phillies keeps him connected to a city he called home. Maybe one day he'll be lucky enough to return.