Chicago decided to make a bold move this summer and trade out Alex Caruso to Oklahoma City in a one-for-one swap for Josh Giddey, who is a 21-year-old future star with elite passing and defending skills. The Bulls executives believe that the Australian guard can help rebuild the franchise’s long-lost legacy.
The Illinois club saw the potential in placing the young player in a roster next to Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, and Practice Williams, all four players who are under 25 years of age and a bright future ahead. Next to them, more experienced stars like Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, and of course, Lonzo Ball.
“My job is just to make these guys’ life easy,” Giddey told the press this week. “I’m trying to get Zach the ball, Coby the ball, get these guys easy looks and take the load off them.”
🚨 SEASON-HIGH DIMES FOR GIDDEY 🚨
Despite the Bulls’ loss, Josh Giddey was dishing it as well as ever on his way to another solid game!
📊 9 PTS | 13 AST | 6 REB | 0 TOV#NBA pic.twitter.com/kbkqhRJMaG
— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) November 8, 2024
“We spoke about how we want to play: Get up the floor, kick the ball ahead and run. Look at the wings that we have, Coby, Zach, these guys getting out in transition, it’s going to make this team scary,” the Aussie added when explaining the team’s potential-winning formula.
This plan is very similar to the ones that the Bulls tried to pursue back in 2021, when Bulls general manager Marc Eversley and vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas first decided to acquire Ball, who unfortunately fell to injury for over two years. “[Giddey] plays exactly how we want to play,” Eversley told ESPN.
Chicago is definitely improving their game, as just a few days after their victory over the Bucks, theyset a franchise record for most made three-pointers in a single match with 25 in a victory over the Grizzlies. Giddey contributed with 12 points and a team-high 13 rebounds and 8 assists.
“We don’t run, we’re done,” his coach Billy Donovan said before the campaign began. “It’s that simple. If we run, we’ll have some fun.” While teammates White acknowledged they have two star guards now: “He and [Lonzo Ball] have a lot of similarities. They’re already two steps ahead of the game.”
Giddey has received a lot of praise both as a person and athlete from his former teammates in Oklahoma City
Ever since he started out as a 19-year-old rookie in the NBA, he quickly consolidated his potential and became one of the most exciting prospects in the country. He not only became the youngest player in league history with a triple double and matched Luka Doncic for the most triple doubles as a teenager, he seemed destined to rebuild the Thunder squad.
Josh improved exponentially season to season, as he helped OKC jump from 24 victories in his first year, to 41 during his second, as the franchise earned a place in the Play-in Tournament. “He’s a guy you love to have on your team but hate to go against because he’s a matchup nightmare,” Lou Williams told the media. “He’s a 6-8 point guard who’s able to read the floor.”
Last year, the Thunder climbed the ladder all the way to become the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, while becoming the youngest team to ever do so. “Last season, our team was popping, individual players were popping, and yet he got off to a slow start,” OKC coach Mark Daigneault said last month.
His comments came before Giddey’s first matchup against his former team. “He had the off-court [issue] he had to navigate, and he had to deal with a lot of things on the court that were new for him and unfamiliar with him. In the context of the team, he had some headwinds,” he added.
