For a fleeting moment considered the face of the Nets, Mikal Bridges is hoping for “good energy” as he returns to the Barclays Center on Tuesday for the first time since being traded across the Manhattan Bridge.
“It’ll be just good to be back,” Bridges said. “To see my teammates and the coaching staff that was there for a couple months before I got traded. See the staff and everybody. Good energy.”
Bridges was dealt in the summer for five first-round picks, a decision that simultaneously was meant to vault the Knicks into contender status and the Nets into a full-blown rebuild.
It was also, in some ways, an admission from Brooklyn that Bridges was no longer the player to build around.
That premise had gained traction after Bridges first joined the Nets in a trade from Phoenix in 2022, but mostly fizzled during last season’s disappointment.
For Nets fans, it obviously wasn’t ideal to send Bridges to the interborough rival — especially after Josh Hart, the Knicks forward, had incessantly teased his former Villanova teammate about playing for the less popular New York franchise.
But it’s hard to imagine a better return than five first-rounders and a pick swap.
“I think they should show him love,” Hart told The Post. “Obviously he was only there for a year-and-half, but he played as hard as he could there. Obviously last year I harassed him on social media. He caught some flak for that. But he was always committed to that franchise and that fan base.
“Now he’s here and they got a helluva haul for him. So I think it was a win-win for both franchises and they should show him love when he gets there.”
There’s also the possibility of Nets fans being drowned out by the many Knicks supporters who infiltrate Barclays Center for these matchups.
“Oh yeah, it’s one of our home games,” Hart told The Post. “It’s one of our many.”
Bridges averaged 21.2 points in less than two full campaigns with the Nets, who finished a disappointing 32-50 last season.
Now they’re unashamedly tanking for a high draft pick with a 14-29 record and a three-game losing streak heading into Monday.
Bridges, meanwhile, is coming off one of his better performances with the Knicks, dropping 26 points in just 27 minutes while stifling Atlanta’s Trae Young on defense. New York already beat Brooklyn twice this season at MSG.
“It’s going to be a good game,” Bridges said. “Excited. We beat them twice. Just trying to get another win.”
