Hornets’ Miles Bridges to have ‘significant role right away’ after brutal domestic violence allegations

Charlotte Hornets head coach Steve Clifford says high-flying forward Miles Bridges will “have a significant role right away” when he returns to the team on Friday following the completion of his 30-game suspension for domestic violence charges in Nov. 2022.

“I think he’ll be ready to play. He’s in practice every day. So he’s been well organized when he’s there,” Clifford said ahead of tipoff against the Knicks on Sunday. “He’s in really good shape. He’s worked hard. I’ll be honest, we’ve been playing every other day.

Clifford said he hasn’t given much thought to how he’ll manage Bridges’ minutes in his first game of the season.

“That’s under worry about tomorrow’s problems tomorrow,” he said. “Right now our problems are: we don’t run back on defense, we don’t block out all the time, so I’ve been spending all my time on that.

“But he [Bridges] will have a significant role right away.”

Bridges was arrested in June, 2022 for assaulting the mother of his children while his kids were present. He was released after posting a $30,000 bond and formally charged with one felony count of causing harm to a parent of a child and two felony counts of child abuse. He pleaded not guilty to all three charges at an arraignment the following day in July, 2022.

In Nov. 2022, Bridges changed his plea to no-contest on the felony charge of injuring a child’s parent. The other two felony charges were dropped, and Bridges was sentenced to three years of probation and no jail time.

In April 2023, the NBA suspended Bridges for 30 games without pay, 20 games being considered as suspension time served. He is set to rejoin the Hornets for Friday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks in Charlotte. He is expected to be available when the Knicks visit the Hornets on Nov. 18.

In July, Bridges issued an apology.

“I want to apologize to everybody for the pain and embarrassment that I have caused everyone, especially my family,” he said. “This year away I’ve used to prioritize going to therapy and becoming the best person I can be — someone that my family and everyone here can be proud of.

“A lot of people don’t get a second chance, and I want to use this second chance to prove to everyone that I’m the same kid you drafted five years ago.”

Yet Bridges remained in headlines at the start of the 2023-24 NBA season.

In October, a criminal summons was issued for an alleged violation of the protective order against the mother of his children. Bridges is also charged with child abuse and damage to personal property after allegedly throwing pool balls, smashing the windshields and denting his ex-girlfriend’s car while his children were inside.

He is also accused of threatening to withhold child support from the mother of his children if she were to report his actions to the police.

Bridges surrendered to the police in mid-October after an arrest warrant was served and was released on $1,000 bond.

He emerged as a fringe All-Star in the East, averaging 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists per game in the 2021-22 season but his legal issues impact him far beyond the basketball court. Bridges was in line for a hefty payday but signed a $7.9 million qualifying offer that allows him to enter unrestricted free agency next summer.