Nets pulled controversial move to preserve Mikal Bridges’ streak

Feb 8, 2020; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges (25) high fives fans while entering the court for the game against the Denver Nuggets at Talking Stick Resort Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports

The Brooklyn Nets pulled a somewhat iffy move on Sunday to preserve Mikal Bridges’ streak of consecutive games played.

Bridges entered Sunday having played 391 consecutive games, and made it 392 by getting the start in a meaningless game against the Philadelphia 76ers. After four seconds, the Nets forward committed an intentional foul and was removed from the game, where he sat out the remainder.

Mikal Bridges checked in for 4 SECONDS today to keep his streak of 392 consecutive NBA games played alive

The longest active streak in the NBA 💪 pic.twitter.com/quZuprNDBq

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 9, 2023

The move also meant Bridges played in 83 games this season, the product of his midseason move from Phoenix to Brooklyn.

Depending on how you look at it, this is either a pretty funny move or a weak one. In the era of load management, Bridges’ streak is worth applauding, but this was not exactly a totally legitimate way to keep it going. The statistics will ultimately reflect that he played, though, which is all that matters in the end to Brooklyn.