Miles Bridges was at Hornets scrimmage but don’t expect anything more just yet
Before he took the court for Saturday’s annual purple and teal day, Miles Bridges wasn’t sure what to expect.
After all, it had been more than 15 months since the Charlotte Hornets forward was last seen in between the lines at Spectrum Center and he didn’t have much of a feel for how he would be received at the team’s annual purple and teal scrimmage on Saturday.
“Yeah, it’s tough,” Bridges said. “But I hope to get a good reaction. My mom and my sister will be there, so I’ll be happy.”
Turns out, Bridges received a pretty positive response when his name was first announced by Sam Farber, the Hornets’ radio play-by-play voice who served as the on-court emcee. Fans cheered him on during a 3-point contest between Bridges, LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller.
But it’s going to be a while before Hornets faithful can see him on the court again.
Upon further clarification of the NBA’s rules regarding player suspensions heading into the season, Bridges is ineligible to play in the preseason due to his suspension, meaning he won’t be available to suit up until Charlotte hosts Milwaukee on Nov. 17 in the NBA’s inaugural in-season tournament.
“If he was able to play, obviously that would have been one of the ways that he could have started getting rhythm,” coach Steve Clifford said Saturday. “We are not able to do that, so there are a lot of other ways we can do that. And that’s what we are trying to kind of figure out now.”
Multiple media outlets, including The Observer, previously reported Bridges would be eligible to play in the preseason.
In April, the NBA suspended Bridges for 30 games after domestic violence charges. It was deemed he had served 20 games last season. Bridges pleaded no contest to a felony count of injuring a child’s parent in exchange for three years of probation and no jail time in late 2022.
Technically, Bridges’ situation in the preseason is no different than what he’ll experience once the regular season tips off against Atlanta on Oct. 25. He is allowed to accompany the Hornets on road trips, and can practice and participate in the Hornets’ game day shootarounds. But he can’t be at the arena within two hours of tipoff.
So, the purple and teal event represented Bridges’ best chance to interact with the fans until then. For one day anyway, he could enjoy the moment and soak it all in.
“I haven’t played on the home court in a minute and I’m happy they get to see how good we got throughout the training camp,” Bridges said.
It’s just the latest part of Bridges inserting himself back into the local community. He said his experiences in public when spotted around town in Charlotte recently are encouraging, with most being overly welcoming.
“Yeah, it’s been good,” Bridges said “I’ve been taking pictures with kids. Whenever I take my kids to the park or something and somebody notices me, it’s all good vibes.”
This story was originally published October 7, 2023 at 2:48 PM.
