The Rise Of The Thunder’s Perfect Sidekick

Positional size, versatility and the ability to process the game quickly are some of the key traits that NBA teams value in players today. In the modern game, Josh Giddey checks all of these boxes and more. The young Oklahoma City Thunder guard is developing into the perfect sidekick for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

At just 20 years old, Giddey processes the game at an elite level. Combine that with the fact that he’s 6-foot-9 with the skillset of a point guard and it’s easy to see why he’s one of the top young players in the league.

“Age is just a number,” said Thunder GM Sam Presti when asked what he learned watching Giddey this season.

While Giddey had a spectacular rookie season, he took things to a new level in year two. The Australian guard finished the 2022-23 season with averages of 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists per contest while shooting 48.2% from the floor and 32.5% from deep. The production and efficiency increased at a solid rate year-over-year, which is extremely promising and something Giddey’s teammates saw coming.

“The first time I saw Josh play again after last year, I could see he got better,” said Gilgeous-Alexander earlier this month. “More confidence and more to his game. He continued to get a lot better as the season went on.”

Giddey’s fit next to Gilgeous-Alexander has taken time to really work itself out. Last season, these two guards didn’t get much playing time with each other due to various injuries. Even early in the most recent season there were times in which they didn’t play well off of each other. However, as the season went on something clicked and this duo began to thrive together.

“I said last year, those types of things with two guys that are pretty ball-dominant, they take time,” said Giddey at the end of the 2022-23 season. “That chemistry will continue to grow as time goes on. I love playing with him. He’s one of the best players in the league.”

If Giddey is going to reach his ceiling, it will come down to his ability to knock down jumpers. While he’s always had great touch in the midrange, knocking down runners, floaters, and even turnaround jumpers, the 3-point shot was concerning. As a rookie, his mechanics and shooting numbers from deep were not good. Luckily for him, the Thunder hired renowned shooting coach Chip Engelland last summer who has spent countless hours with Giddey over the past year.

“I love Chip. I’m with Chip almost every single day,” said Giddey at the close of the season.

Giddey’s shot now looks much improved, which is a function of tweaks to mechanics and also mental training. Being a consistent shooter requires repetition, focus on form and the right mental approach to each and every shot.

The rising star shot 26.3% from beyond the arc as a rookie and 32.5% as a sophomore. That’s significant improvement, but we’ll need to see that continue in future seasons as well. If Giddey can become a consistent 35% shooter from deep, he will have the upside to be a legitimate secondary star. At 20 years old, he was the second leading scorer on a postseason team while also producing the most points and assists of any player on the roster. Furthermore, in what was the biggest game of his career against the New Orleans Pelicans in the play-in, he scored 30 points to go along with 10 assists and nine rebounds and was one of the best players on the floor.

Becoming a respectable 3-point shooter will force defenses to play him differently which will open up driving lanes, where Giddey thrives currently. Late in the 2022-23 season, he really started to learn how to get to the free throw line. He also has gotten better at using his size to back down and bully smaller defenders. Any guard under 6-foot-5 that lacks strength is at a significant disadvantage when he decides he’s going to force his way to the rim.

Regardless, there’s a clear path to Giddey becoming a potent scorer to compliment his elite facilitation if is able to keep improving as a shooter and learn to better leverage his size offensively.

Defensively, his unique size at 6-foot-9 allows him to guard multiple positions too. If he improves his footwork and continues to get stronger and quicker, he’ll have the ability to defend upwards of four positions.

As Giddey develops into one of the most promising young guards in the NBA, he continues to fit even more perfectly next to Gilgeous-Alexander. When Oklahoma City emerges as a consistent playoff contender in the coming years, expect Giddey to be a key piece of the core, likely as a sidekick.