Australian basketball star Josh Giddey has been traded from the Oklhoma City Thunder to the Chicago Bulls.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported the bombshell deal on Friday morning (AEST), with Giddey traded to the Bulls in exchange for two-time All-Defensive guard Alex Caruso.
It’s unclear if there will be more assets attached to the deal on either side.
Giddey was drafted by OKC with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. He’s coming off his least productive season in year three, struggling to evolve with the rest of the No. 1 seeded Thunder’s budding core.
His scoring dropped from 16.6 points per game to 12.3 points in a career-best 80 games.
It included Giddey’s role gradually declining throughout the campaign, eventually coming off the bench in the 2024 playoffs and averaging 18 minutes.
The 21-year old this off-season is eligible to sign a max contract extension from his base rookie deal.
“The Bulls have been determined to find a playmaker to replace Lonzo Ball, and Giddey, 21, comes with an All-Star potential that would unlikely be realised with the Thunder because of the playmaking star power who surrounded him,” Wojnarowski wrote.
“Giddey was the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft and developed into one of the league’s most creative young playmakers. The Bulls will offer him an opportunity to have the ball in his hands and more freedom to pass and score. Chicago needed an engine for its offence, and the Bulls land that with Giddey.”
MORE TO COME.