Mikal Bridges signing four-year, $150 million Knicks contract extension

From five first-round picks to $150 million. 

The Knicks will extend the contract of Mikal Bridges, a source confirmed Thursday, with the durable wing agreeing to four years and $150 million that includes a player option. 

The deal landed about $6 million less than the max, which might help the Knicks moving forward as they navigate the CBA’s apron restrictions. By agreeing to a deal, Bridges is also forgoing free agency next summer, when he could’ve signed for considerably more — nearly $300 million over five years at a max rate. 

The average annual salary of $37.5 million for the extension — which starts in the 2026-27 campaign — feels more reasonable for Bridges, who struggled for much of last season before redeeming himself in the playoffs. 

At 28, Bridges remains part of a Knicks’ core five who are all in their primes and signed through at least the next three seasons. His commitment below the max was trumpeted as a discount to maintain the team’s flexibility moving forward, although it’s not quite the same gesture as Jalen Brunson’s a year ago. 

Brunson would’ve assuredly signed a larger max deal by waiting until free agency. Bridges has more to prove, and he was often the fourth scoring option last season.