when the Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder swapped guards on June 21, 2024, it was a trade that certainly surprised a lot of folks. Alex Caruso, Chicago’s defensive star would be going to OKC. And coming back to the Windy City would be 6’8 Josh Giddey.
The biggest reason for the deal was the apparent lack of fit that the Australian guard had with the Thunder. His role had been diminishing, and after a surprising 2nd-round defeat at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, they believed that a change was needed.
Just 17 months after the deal, Caruso has helped OKC to win a title. Giddey, now in his second year in Chicago and on a long-term contract, is shining. The textbook definition of a win-win move.
Now, let’s talk about the big guard’s All-Star case, because he clearly has one.
Josh Giddey Is Playing the Best Ball of His Career
Through seven games this season, few players have been impressing like Josh Giddey. The Aussie is averaging career-highs in points, rebounds, and assists. He has a Bulls team that hasn’t made the playoffs in four season at the top of the East. There is finally some positivity in Chicago.
Chicago has not won a playoff series since the 2014-15 season, when Derrick Rose was still the team’s top player. They have only made two playoff appearances in the intervening years. But, thanks to Giddey and company, this is a team that can finally be taken seriously.
This is a franchise that has not had a real play-making point guard since the Rajon Rondo experiment during the 2016-17 campaign. And when your PG is not only leading in scoring, but assists too, it bodes rather well.
In his second year in Chicago, Giddey has been averaging 23 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists per night. He’s also shooting a career-best 49.6% from the floor. A career 33% 3PT shooter, he’s knocking down 42% of attempts from deep this year.
It was only two nights ago that the Aussie found Nikola Vucević for the game-winning three against the Philadelphia 76ers. They trailed by 24+ points in the second-half, by the way.
The Eastern Conference might be stacked with explosive, elite guards. Tyrese Maxey. Donovan Mitchell. Jalen Brunson. Cade Cunningham. Giddey ranks well with all of them to this point in the year. And hey, it is these Bulls that are at the top of the East right now, after all. 6-1 looks good on the resumé.
Chicago Bulls Recipe for Continued Success
We have seen plenty of teams start hot out of the gate, and then fizzle out later on. The Chicago Bulls can certainly avoid being one of these teams. Most notable is the fact that Coby White, coming off a career-year, has not yet played.
The 5-0 beginning for Chicago marked their best since the NBA Champion team of 1996-97. This is just the third time in franchise history that they have started 6-1 or better. Josh Giddey finding the open man is a big part of the recipe.
They will need Kevin Huerter, Nikola Vucević and Matas Buzelis to keep making their threes. To see Ayo Dosunmu and Isaac Okoro to play their ferocious defense. The aforementioned center has been looked at as an unmovable contract for a few years. But the Montenegrin has been one of the biggest catalysts of their victories, averaging a double-double and putting up nearly four assists per contest.
Ultimately, team will go as Giddey does. Being 6-1 right now is not what was expected. As a matter of fact, even ESPN projected the Bulls projected to come in 12th place in the East.
The vibes are high in ChiTown. Josh Giddey absolutely looks like an All-Star. He would be the franchise’s first since 2022-23, when Zach LaVine got the nod.
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