East Notes: Hornets, Miles Bridges, Bucks, Celtics

Hornets

The Hornets would like to bring back restricted free agent Miles Bridges for the 2023-24 season, per Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN.

Bridges missed all of last year after pleading no contest to a domestic violence charge in November. Bridges will have to sit out 10 games once he signs another contract, the NBA said. He was originally suspended for 30 games but was given credit for 20 games served. 

Bridges is indeed expected to return to the league next season with the Hornets, as we relayed here.

• Four of five rival executives spoken to by Hoops Wire said that they have G League guard Scoot Henderson at No. 2 on their draft board, and they believe that is who the Hornets will select in the 2023 NBA Draft. The fifth exec declined to reveal the second player on his draft board.

Bucks

Former Warriors guard Nico Mannion is expected to join the Bucks for summer league, per Donatas Urbonas of Basket News.

Mannion, 22, was the No. 48 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, appearing in 30 games with the Warriors as a rookie. He spent this past season with Italian club Virtus Bologna.

Mannion is the son of former NBA player Pace Mannion and has also spent time in the G League.

Celtics

The Celtics battled back from a 3-2 series deficit against the 76ers in the Eastern Conference finals, and now they’re trying to do something similar against the Heat after trailing 3-0 in the conference finals.

So far, so good, as the series now stands at 3-2 with Game 6 set for Saturday in Miami.

But star wing Jayson Tatum said he’s not sure why the Celtics always make things so difficult for themselves.

“I wish I didn’t know the answer,” Tatum said, via Jared Weiss of The Athletic. “For some odd reason, even last year, we seemed to always make it tough on ourselves. But I do know you can see the true character of a person, of a team, when things aren’t going well.”

• We have more on the Celtics in our latest notes following their Game 5 victory right here and always on our Celtics page.