The Utah Jazz are expected to have interest in Miles Bridges and that's bad for everyone involved

Some things are bigger than winning and we're hoping that Danny Ainge and co. are aware of that. The Utah Jazz are apparently linked to former Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges, who will enter free agency this summer after six seasons with the Hornets. On paper, he seems like a solid option, but looks are often deceiving.

Bridges, who has had back-to-back seasons of 20-point scoring, is a slightly below-average three-point shooter, who is a good rebounder. He's also a solid passer while being a bit of a liability on defense. If he had anyone's else stat line, it'd be fair to say "steer clear" on the grounds of him getting overpaid for his output. He'd be seen as the next Tobias Harris with what he'd get financially, and for what he can provide on the court.

Yet, when it comes to Bridges, there's an even bigger issue to worry about: his off-the-court behavior. Bridges missed all of the 2022-2023 season due to allegations of domestic violence, where he allegedly assaulted the mother of his children. He would later plead no contest to one of the charges and was sentenced to three years of probation. He would later be accused of violating the restraining order that his children's mother had against him when he allegedly threw billiard balls through the window of her car while his children were in the backseat.

Those charges have since been dropped the charges after the alleged victim gave conflicting statements as to what happened to her car. Without her cooperation, the state dismissed the charges due to a lack of evidence.

We're not going to speculate as to what happened here. We weren't there. What we will say, however, is Bridges is clearly unreliable. He already has travel issues, having had trouble leaving the country, when he attempted to travel to Canada this past season. What happens if he still can't get in during a key game or the playoffs?

The cause for such concerns is also worth discussing. Whether he has actual behavioral issues or just surrounds himself with people who make his life more challenging, he clearly isn't someone you can rely on. He keeps getting himself in trouble, and whether he's guilty, innocent, or otherwise, that's a major reason to avoid him. Why attach yourself to a potential headache like him?

Bridges may end up in more legal trouble, and if he does, guilty or innocent, it'll lead to another absence from the team, and that means the Jazz would have to find a way to overcome his absence. And that's just how I'm looking at his situation and fit if we take the emotion out of the situation.

There is a clear concern that anyone who signs him will end up getting someone who could easily be back in front of a judge, sooner rather than later. The Jazz don't need to attach themselves to someone with issues staying out of trouble.

While we can't say whether Bridges is guilty or not, what we can say is, with the evidence we've seen, we'd feel a lot better about the direction of the franchise if Bridges wasn't part of it.