After spending his rookie season on a two-way contract with the Phoenix Suns, 24-year-old forward Jalen Bridges is using an opportunity with the Summer League Celtics to find a new home in his young NBA career.
Bridges — a four-year college player that had stops at West Virginia and Baylor — was added to the Summer League roster two weeks ago, reportedly with an opportunity to battle for a roster spot at training camp this fall.
Jalen Bridges has been added to the Celtics summer league roster, I’ve been told, and will be going to camp with the team in the fall with a chance to make the roster. He played for Phoenix on a two-way contract as a rookie.
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) July 2, 2025
Starting out the 2026 summer league as a DNP, Bridges was thrust into the starting lineup Sunday, delivering an efficient 16-point performance in just under 23 minutes during Boston’s 94-81 win over the Knicks. It was a productive two-way effort from the 6-foot-8 wing, who shot 6-of-10 from the field, grabbed five rebounds and came away with two steals and two blocks.
A day later against the Miami Heat, Bridges played 12 minutes in a 100-96 loss.
After a game spent on the bench while Boston fans extolled over the tenacious debut effort of first round pick Hugo Gonzalez, head coach Matt Reynolds praised Bridges for a workmanlike performance that helped the team to victory.
“I saw a guy that’s ready to play,” Reynolds said. “It’s not easy to do that, to watch from the bench and then get inserted into a starting lineup and just fill a role.
“I don’t think he was out there trying to do too much. He does exactly what you expect him to do. He’s a pro, he knows what he’s doing and we commend him for stepping in having not played and contributing to a win.”
In his lone season as a pro, Bridges had been a reliably productive perimeter shooter with size to crash the glass. Though he made eight brief appearances for the Phoenix Suns last year, Bridges had a promising sample size with their G-League affiliate, the Valley Suns, scoring 14 points per game across 31 regular season appearances, finishing with shooting splits of 42/39/79 to go with 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists.
It’d ultimately be a one-year trial for Bridges in Phoenix, and now he’s embracing the opportunity to impress for a Celtics team that currently has a full roster, but room to maneuver come training camp.
“Things kind of fell through there, they chose to go in a different direction,” Bridges said of his time in Phoenix. “I’m very self-aware, I don’t necessarily feel I gave them reasons to keep me. I felt like I had a good season, but I know what I’m capable of and I didn’t feel like I played up to that. I’m just happy for this opportunity.”
In his early minutes in Las Vegas, Bridges is leaning into his ability as a floor-spacing perimeter shooter, but he mentioned prioritizing effort in the little things as the primary method in which he’ll earn minutes on the floor and chances at open shots.
“My goals are just to go out and play hard, play with effort,” he said. “I feel like when you do that the basketball gods take care of you, the ball just seems to find you, whether that be in transition, making a layup, making an easy open shot. When you play hard, the rest takes care of itself. That’s just really what I’m trying to hang my hat on.”
Hailing from Fairmont, Bridges is a rare West Virginia native at the NBA level. The Fairmont Senior High standout is the first NBA player from the state since Donte Grantham, who played in three NBA games in 2019. Prior to that, Deron Williams and O.J. Mayo were the most recent recognizable faces from the Mountain State, though neither has played since 2018.
“I know where I come from, and I’m not trying to go back so I’ve gotta go a little bit harder than everybody else,” Bridges said. “That’s just the reality of the situation, especially when you have that undrafted tag on you.”
Bridges also has a small built-in connection to Joe Mazzulla, who coached his cousin during his time as head coach at Fairmont State.
After some promising moments in his first minutes of action, Bridges will continue to get opportunities in Vegas to show Boston’s coaching staff that he’s a serious candidate for a roster spot this season.
