Nets Using Plays From Phoenix to Utilize Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson

The famous twins are out of town for good, though Suns fans still cling to their personalities. Brooklyn Nets coach Jacque Vaughn says the team has used previous looks from Phoenix to help integrate both Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson.

The Phoenix Suns no longer have the talents of Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson, yet fans here in the Valley will continue to follow their paths after growing a strong admiration for the dubbed "twins" over the last few years. 

Bridges and Johnson now feature for the Brooklyn Nets after they landed in the Big Apple with four future first-round picks in exchange for Kevin Durant in TJ Warren.

Both have found some instant success in their new environment. Bridges' last game against the Miami Heat saw him score a career high 45 points while Johnson is averaging nearly 15 points per game. 

Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said Brooklyn has brought over some similar looks from Phoenix to help maximize their two newest players:

"So we definitely integrated [plays from Phoenix]. I think what you see if the way we started. When K [Kevin Durant] was here we had that similar pin down, Nic [Claxton] would go get Kevin, but we started at a different angle," said Vaughn. 

"Just looking at some of the Phoenix stuff - and to get Mikal a little more freedom  we moved it up to the elbow and they were kinda playing out of that for sure. That will be a part of us going forward, and we'll kinda grow from there a little bit.

"I really think Spencer [Dinwiddie], Mikal and Nic can have some more synergy and grow together, whether that ends up being double drag in the middle of the floor where there is some stacked pick-and-roll and a lot of that. We'll use CJ [Cam Johnson] in that also because of his ability to shoot, so you'll start seeing us flare a little bit … But yeah, watching some film and getting some input from Mikal and CJ, that's definitely an area we'll continue to grow in."

Full video:

I asked Jacque Vaughn about the Nets implementing sets from the Phoenix Suns and Monty Williams' playbook, specifically for Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges. Loved his answer: pic.twitter.com/2JiVil9wOh

— Matt Brooks (@MattBrooksNBA) February 22, 2023