OKC Thunder Star Breaks Silence on Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso Trade
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Chicago Bulls recently made a major trade, swapping Josh Giddey and Alex Caruso. The Thunder get one of the best role players in basketball, while Chicago bets on the upside of Giddey after he was an imperfect fit in Oklahoma City.
The deal came as a bit of a surprise, since many believed Chicago could have gotten much more back for Caruso than a player swap with no picks involved. That said, Chicago seems to truly believe in what Giddey can do as a lead guard, which is a position he was not going to have the chance to play in Oklahoma City.
Following the trade, Thunder star Jalen Williams sent out a simple post, sharing his sadness for Giddey being dealt:
😔
— therealjalenwilliams (@jdubwttp) June 21, 2024
While there is certainly a level of excitement in Oklahoma City to land Caruso, it seems there is also a level of sadness among the players for their teammate being dealt out. This is the unfortunate reality of the NBA, as players develop relationships with each other, and often see their close friends sent elsewhere.
For Oklahoma City, this deal projects to make them an even greater force in the Western Conference after they finished first in the standings last season. Caruso does a lot of things well on the court, particularly on the defensive end, which will help Oklahoma City reach a new level.Â
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JOEY LINN
Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined Sports Illustrated's FanNation to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams during his time in school. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts, combined with his excellence in the classroom, earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time across multiple platforms, primarily serving as a credentialed Clippers beat writer.