Josh Giddey Reflects On Time With OKC Thunder

Oklahoma City’s former lottery pick tried to make the best out of a tough season.

May 13, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Josh Giddey (3) warms up before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Oklahoma City Thunder in game four of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Oklahoma City hasn’t had too many misses in the lottery over the course of the team’s rebuild. Poaching Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in a trade with the Clippers and drafting Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams created the foundation of a current contender. Josh Giddey was always supposed to be part of the plan, too. After a rocky season, though, he’s trying to find footing and a fresh start in Chicago.

At times, it looked like Giddey was an elite prospect. During his sophomore campaign, he averaged 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists. It all came crashing down as Oklahoma City rose to the top, though. Giddey went on the Ball Magnets podcast to dish on his time in Oklahoma City and how hard it was for him to feel like the player he was.

"This year, for me, it felt like a nightmare that was never going to end,” Giddey said. “I felt like I couldn't get going. I'd string one, two, three good games together and then there'd be a stretch of bad ones. It just felt like I could never build any momentum.

"The thing I found the best was just integrating myself into the team. Whether I was on the plane, at hotels, in the locker room, just being around my teammates made things so much better.”

Giddey found himself struggling on the court and in the middle of an investigation regarding an inappropriate underage relationship. The allegations were dropped and the case was over, but relentless opposing fans made life miserable for Giddey all season long. He could never find his footing on a soaring Thunder team. Because Oklahoma City was so good, the team received more national attention than ever before, and Giddey’s shortcomings were in the spotlight.

His averages dropped to 12.3 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists, and he played a career-low 25 minutes a game. In the playoffs, Giddey was ultimately benched as Mark Daigneault was looking for a spark.

“It’s not easy, especially for me,” Giddey said. “In my situation, getting booed and hearing that type of stuff on the road was tough. That would be tough for anybody. I was just very lucky, I had really good people around me. They guided and helped me, were there for me. My teammates were unbelievable, the organization, Sam (Presti), Mark (Daigneault), everybody throughout.”

The Thunder had to make a tough call, and Giddey wasn’t super interested in coming off the bench. After the heights he had reached in his NBA career, coming off the bench was hard to fathom. From 30-point triple doubles, to an unbelievable play-in performance, and everything in between, it became clear that Giddey wasn’t in the right headspace during his last season in Oklahoma City.

For Giddey, though, the Thunder will always hold a special place in his heart. It wasn’t supposed to end the way it did, but the memories will remain. 

Oklahoma City was notoriously known as a tight-knit group, and Giddey was right at the center of it. Many of his teammates spoke out on how much they would miss the Australian guard, and Giddey returned the favor this week.

“NBA locker rooms are fun,” Giddey said. "I think that’s some of the best times. Especially with the team I was just on, those are some of my closest friends. Getting to spend that much time with them, you take it for granted in the moment, those locker rooms, plane rides, bus rides, they were a lot of fun."

---

Want to join the discussion? LikeThunder on SIon Facebook andfollow us on Twitterto stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can alsomeet the teambehind the coverage.