Josh Giddey

Joshua Giddey (born 10 October 2002) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Thunder with the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft.

Josh Giddey
Giddey with the NBA Global Academy in 2020
No. 3 – Oklahoma City Thunder
PositionPoint guard
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (2002-10-10) 10 October 2002
Melbourne, Victoria
NationalityAustralian
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school
NBA draft2021 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall
Selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder
Playing career2020–present
Career history
2020–2021Adelaide 36ers
2021–presentOklahoma City Thunder
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Australia
FIBA Oceania Under-17 Championship
2019 New CaledoniaTeam

Early life and career

Giddey attended St Kevin's College in Melbourne before emerging as one of Australia's top basketball prospects with the NBA Global Academy, a training center at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra.[1][2] He attended UC Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra alongside his full-time training at the AIS.[3]

At the Australian Under-18 Championships in April 2019, Giddey averaged 20 points, 8.3 rebounds and six assists per game, leading VIC Metro to the title.[4] In January 2020, Giddey helped the NBA Global Academy win the Torneo Junior Ciutat de L'Hospitalet in Barcelona, where he earned most valuable player (MVP) honors.[5] In the following month at NBA All-Star Weekend in Chicago, he took part in Basketball Without Borders and was named an all-star of the camp.[6]

Professional career

Adelaide 36ers (2020–2021)

On 12 March 2020, Giddey signed with the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League (NBL) as a part of the league's Next Stars program to develop NBA draft prospects, and he became the first Australian player to be a part of the program.[7] Giddey turned down offers from several NCAA Division I programs, including Arizona.[8] On 26 April 2021, he recorded 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a 93–77 loss to the New Zealand Breakers,[9] becoming the youngest Australian in NBL history to record a triple double.[10] In the 36ers' next game against the Brisbane Bullets on 1 May, he became the first ever Australian to record a triple-double in consecutive games, finishing with 15 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds in a 101–79 win.[11] He had a third triple-double on 9 May in a 97–88 overtime win over the Sydney Kings, finishing with 11 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds.[12] Giddey was released from the active playing roster on 17 May to prepare for the 2021 NBA draft, and finished the season averaging 10.9 points, 7.3 rebounds and a league-leading 7.6 assists per game in 28 games played.[13][14] He was selected as the league's Rookie of the Year.[15]

Oklahoma City Thunder (2021–present)

On 27 April 2021, Giddey declared for the 2021 NBA draft where he was projected to be a lottery pick.[16] On 29 July, he was drafted as the sixth overall pick by the Oklahoma City Thunder, and on 8 August, Giddey signed a contract with the Thunder.[17] That same day, he suffered an ankle injury five minutes into his NBA Summer League debut and was ruled out for the rest of the competition as a precautionary measure.[18] On 20 October, Giddey made his NBA debut, putting up four points, 10 rebounds, and three assists in a 107–86 loss to the Utah Jazz.[19] On 27 October, Giddey recorded his first double-double with 18 points and 10 assists in a 123–115 win over the Los Angeles Lakers, while also becoming the third-youngest player to record at least 10 assists in a game, only behind LeBron James who did it twice.[20] On 24 November, Giddey became the third teenage player in NBA history to notch 100 rebounds and assists in his first 20 games, joining LaMelo Ball and LeBron James in this feat.[21]

National team career

Giddey represented Australia at the 2019 FIBA Under-17 Oceania Championship in New Caledonia. He averaged 16.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and five assists per game and was named to the All-Star Five after leading his team to a gold medal. In the final against New Zealand, he collected 25 points, eight rebounds, six assists and five steals in an 85–56 win.[22]

On 23 February 2020, Giddey made his debut for the Australia national basketball team during 2021 FIBA Asia Cup qualification. He recorded 11 points, six assists and three rebounds in 11 minutes, helping Australia defeat Hong Kong, 115–52.[23] Giddey became the youngest player to play for the senior team since Ben Simmons in 2013.[24]

Giddey was one of the final cuts from the Australian basketball team roster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and was instead selected as one of three emergency players.[25]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

NBL
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2020–21 Adelaide 282632.1.425.293.6917.37.61.1.410.9

Personal life

Giddey's father, Warrick, played basketball professionally and was a longtime player for the Melbourne Tigers in Australia.[4] His mother, Kim, played for the Tigers in the Women's National Basketball League.[26] Giddey's sister, Hannah, plays forward for the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles.[27] Warrick Giddey was also the head coach at St. Kevin's College, Melbourne in the APS Competition in which Josh participated. Warrick Giddey stepped down from his coaching role to support Josh in the NBA.

References
  1. Makeham, Jake (30 July 2021). "Australian Giddey to achieve NBA dream with Oklahoma City Thunder". Mojo News. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  2. Uluc, Olgun (18 July 2019). "Josh Giddey emerges out of nowhere to become one of Australia's elite prospects". Fox Sports. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  3. "August 2021 Newsletter" (PDF). UC Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra. August 2021. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  4. "Josh Giddey: The road so far for Melbourne's next great prospect". The Pick and Roll. 3 October 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  5. "Josh Giddey named MVP as the NBA Global Academy Triumphs at the 2020 Torneo Junio Ciutat de L'Hospitalet". Basketball Australia. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  6. Kidane, Benyam (18 February 2020). "Fresh off being named a Basketball Without Borders All-Star and being selected for the Australian Boomers, Josh Giddey continues to make waves". Sporting News. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  7. "Josh Giddey to Become NBL Next Star with Adelaide 36ers". NBL. 12 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  8. Uluc, Olgun (26 August 2019). "Josh Giddey, a 2021 point guard out of the NBA Global Academy picks up offer from Arizona - sources". Fox Sports. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  9. "Breakers vs 36ers". FIBALiveStats.com. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  10. "Youngest Australian in NBL history to record a triple double". twitter.com/NBL. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  11. "Night of Sixers celebrations against Bullets". NBL.com.au. 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  12. "DJ delivers in OT as Giddey racks up another triple-double". NBL.com.au. 9 May 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  13. "Josh Giddey released from Adelaide 36ers active playing roster as Club supports his next step". Adelaide 36ers. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  14. Uluc, Olgun (17 May 2021). "Josh Giddey released from 36ers' playing roster as he prepares for NBA Draft". ESPN. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  15. "Bryce Cotton Claims Third Andrew Gaze MVP Trophy". NBL.com.au. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  16. "Aussie playmaking guard Giddey to enter draft". ESPN.com. 27 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  17. "Thunder Signs First-Round Draft Picks Josh Giddey and Tre Mann". NBA.com. 8 August 2021. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  18. Taylor, Cody (16 August 2021). "Josh Giddey to miss Thunder summer league finale with ankle injury". USA Today. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  19. "Josh Giddey impresses in NBA debut but Jazz win". ESPN.com. Associated Press. 20 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  20. "Josh Giddey makes history with double-double as Oklahoma City beat Los Angeles Lakers". ABC News. 27 October 2021. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  21. Rhim, Julian (24 November 2021). "Thunder rookie Josh Giddey matches LeBron James, LaMelo Ball in NBA history". ClutchPoints. Retrieved 27 November 2021.
  22. "FIBA U17 Oceania Championship All-Star Five". FIBA. 25 August 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  23. "Teen Giddey shines on debut in huge Boomers win". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 February 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  24. "Giddey set to create history for Boomers". ESPN. 20 February 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  25. Wenzel, Murray (3 July 2021). "Giddey misses cut as Boomers chase gold". 7 News. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  26. Ward, Roy (16 January 2021). "NBA prospect Giddey learns big lessons in NBL". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
  27. Hines, Kelly (14 October 2021). "From Australia to Oklahoma: Thunder rookie Josh Giddey glad to be near sister Hannah, who plays for ORU".
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