Hornets re-signing Miles Bridges is embarrassing: Instant reaction & analysis

The Charlotte Hornets have re-signed Miles Bridges to a three-year, $75 million contract, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, and it’s completely embarrassing.

Bridges returned to action this past season after missing all of the 2022-23 season while suffering the consequences of his horrendous off-the-court action.

Charlotte Hornets re-signing Miles Bridges is completely embarrassing

The 26-year-old forward got into an altercation with his girlfriend, the mother of his children, that ended in a criminal domestic violence case.

Bridges pleaded “no contest” in the case, which means “while you do not admit your guilt, you do admit the truth of the facts alleged in the indictment.” Effectively, Bridges admitted that what happened, happened, but did not admit that he was guilty.

And now, he’s going to be back in a Hornets uniform, making $25 million per season. That’s a complete and utter embarrassment, and Bridges is a stain on the organization.

Charlotte being willing to bring him back into the fold for three more years, and as the second-highest paid player on the roster, at that, is a terrible decision, and the franchise should be embarrassed.

Obviously, on the court, Bridges is a great player. Before his off-the-court behavior, he was set to be a huge part of what the Hornets were building as their second-best player behind LaMelo Ball.

Now, he will still be a part of his future, but he shouldn’t be.

This past season, Bridges appeared in 69 games for the Hornets. He averaged 21.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists while shooting 46.2% from the field and 34.9% from behind the three-point line.

Objectively, he had a solid season for Charlotte during a year when they were one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference. But that doesn’t matter.

It’s impossible to separate his play on the court from his actions off the court because of how truly heinous his off-the-court actions were.

The fact that the Hornets were eager and willing to have him be a part of what they are building speaks volumes as to what they are willing to look past in the pursuit of winning.

Charlotte could have easily let Bridges walk and built around a core of Ball, Brandon Miller, Tidjane Salaun, and Mark Williams, but they decided to re-sign Bridges.

Now, no matter what level of success the Hornets reach with him on the team, they will have to deal with the fact that they allowed a person like him to be a part of their organization.

And they should be embarrassed.