While the Chicago Bulls were offered as many as two first round picks at the 2024 trade deadline for Alex Caruso, they instead traded him to the Oklahoma City Thunder in June for Josh Giddey. The trade came as a surprise to many as Giddey’s role with the Thunder had been diminished. But the Bulls saw Giddey as a young prospect with elite passing skills that could help improve fellow young players such as Coby White, Patrick Williams and Ayo Dosunmu.
“[Giddey] plays exactly how we want to play,” Eversley told ESPN.
The Bulls view the Giddey acquisition as similar to when they traded for Lonzo Ball in 2021.
“My job is just to make these guys’ life easy,” Giddey told ESPN.
“I’m trying to get Zach the ball, Coby the ball, get these guys easy looks and take the load off them. … We spoke about how we want to play: Get up the floor, kick the ball ahead and run. Look at the wings that we have, Coby, Zach, these guys getting out in transition, it’s going to make this team scary.”
While Giddey tried to make the most of his situation with the Thunder, he preferred a trade over the idea of coming off the bench.
“There were no hard feelings to them, but it’s like, as a player, you want to be able to maximize yourself,” Giddey said. “I just thought it wasn’t going to be able to happen there. That’s more of a compliment to them. They had so many good players, and it was hard for me to find a role in that team where I could be me.
“I’m a point guard. That’s kind of what I’ve been my whole life.”
Giddey sees the Bulls as a team that can help unlock his potential.
“This is somewhere I wanted to be,” Giddey said. “I’m very grateful that [Sam Presti’s] the person he is and got me to a great spot.”