The Thunder made a change to their starting line up on Wednesday night, benching Josh Giddey in favor of Isaiah Joe to optimize floor spacing for Game 5 of their semifinal matchup with Dallas, writes Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. The series is currently tied at two games apiece.
The No. 6 overall pick of the 2021 draft, Giddey had started all 218 games — including the postseason — of his three-year career prior to Wednesday.
As Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman wrote late last week, Giddey struggled mightily in the first two games of the series and saw his role drastically reduced — that has continued as the series has unfolded. Through four games, the 21-year-old is averaging 6.0 PPG, 2.3 RPG and 1.3 APG in just 13.3 MPG, posting a .385/.182/1.000 shooting line. The team is minus-22 in his 53 minutes on the court.
In 80 regular season games in 2023/24, Giddey averaged 12.3 PPG, 6.4 RPG and 4.8 APG on .475/.337/.806 shooting in 25.1 MPG.
The Mavericks have been daring Giddey to shoot throughout the series, playing so far off him that it clogs passing lanes and makes life difficult for his teammates. The Australian has also struggled on the other end of the court, Lorenzi added.
Still, Coach of the Year Mark Daigneault called Giddey was a “very important part” of the team’s present and future.
“What I’ve seen is three years of Josh Giddey, and he’s a very good player and a very important player to our team,” Daigneault said, per Lorenzi. “In Game 4 of New Orleans, I don’t know that we close that series if he’s not banging in shots in the fourth quarter. These games are high stakes, they’re obviously emotional. But I think it’s important with every player — good, bad — to zoom out and see the big picture. And the big picture is he’s been a very productive player for a long time. He’s 21 years old. He’s gonna be a very productive player for a long time moving forward.”
Giddey will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason.
Stick with who got you there.
Not if they’re stinking it up as much as Giddey and you have a viable option to replace him.
Yeah that didn’t work at ALL. Move him back to the starting line up for game 6.
Ok man. Sounds good.
Low score,cant defend
Joe has a more complimentary skill set…
I would start Wiggins
That aged nicely….
As i am saying whole year they should pursuit Curry in this offseason.
Giddey, Waters, Kenrich, Dieng and plenty of firsts for Curry
Curry makes $60million…That doesn’t get them near matching. SGA makes $35, Dort$16, Chet $10
Joe is getting extension of maybe $12-14
What makes you think GS is trading Curry (much less for that garbage package)
Giddey is likely getting moved in the offseason if they can find a nice offer. When SGA & Jalen are on the floor they need to handle the ball. Giddey is not a spot up shooter, he has height but does not play strong. He should be helping on offensive rebounds by crashing in, since he isn’t getting defended. If he rebounded like a Westbrook or Josh Hart he could be great and stay out.
Giddey is definitely getting traded. Probably to jazz.
Allow me to remind everyone this guy is a pdf file and should be deleted