Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti laid out in his press release following the team’s decision to trade Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso.
Once regarded as a cornerstone for the Oklahoma City Thunder’s future, Josh Giddey’s role on the team has come under scrutiny. The rise of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to MVP contention, coupled with the promising potential of Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams as future All-Stars, has gradually made Giddey’s presence less essential.
Giddey is undoubtedly a skilled ball-handler and playmaker, but his shooting struggles have limited his effectiveness in a team brimming with talent. As the Thunder continue to develop their roster, Giddey’s shooting woes make it challenging for him to fit seamlessly into a lineup dominated by emerging stars.
“When we drafted Josh in 2021 he was an essential aspect of our vision for the next iteration of the Thunder. Since then, our team has evolved rapidly and dynamically in ways we could never have anticipated. Therefore, as we began our internal discussions this off-season, it was determined that bringing Josh Giddey off the bench next season was our best option to maximize his many talents and deploy our team more efficiently over 48 minutes.
As we laid out to Josh how he could lean into his strengths and ultimately optimize our current roster and talent, it was hard to for him to envision, and conversations turned to him inquiring about potential opportunities elsewhere. As always was the case, Josh Giddey demonstrated the utmost professionalism throughout the discussions. Josh has All-Star potential, but accessing that in the current construct of the Thunder would not be optimal for the collective. Based on these discussions we decided to move forward and prioritize what was best for the organization” – Sam Presti wrote.
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