Potential lottery pick Josh Giddey hasn’t had a chance to workout with any NBA teams since he’s been with the Australian National Team and also didn’t fully participate in the NBA combine, as he told FortyEightMinutes.com and other media on Friday.
The 6-foot-8 guard explained that he did meet with a handful of teams during his one day in Chicago last month.
Potential Top-10 pick Josh Giddey says he met with about nine NBA teams during the pre-draft process.
Perhaps worth noting that the Knicks and Nets were not among them.@FortyEightMins || #NBADraft2021 pic.twitter.com/oZzZnDxCEh
— Chris W. Crouse (@ChrisWCrouse) July 23, 2021
The Knicks and Nets were not among those teams, Giddey said when asked about the New York teams.
Giddey (who went No. 8 to Orlando in our latest mock draft) went on to speak about where he sees himself in the league and which players’ games he tried to emulate. Luka Doncic, Ben Simmons, and Joe Ingles, each of whom is an excellent passer, are established guys that he looks up to.
The 18-year-old also mentioned that he’s spoken with Sixers wing Matisse Thybulle, who is also from Australia and has taken much from Thybulle sharing his experience in the league. Giddey will be among the prospects in the Green Room next Thursday night.
More NBA Draft Buzz
- The Raptors’ interest in Scottie Barnes is real, a source tells FortyEightMinutes. Toronto has been rumored to be fond of the Florida State product and is strongly considering selecting him at No. 4 if the franchise decides not to trade down.
- Evan Mobley was a bit coy about which teams he worked out for in the pre-draft process when speaking with FortyEightMinutes.com and other media on Friday. “The teams won’t let me disclose who I’m working out for,” Mobley said. The big man went on to say that he wants to show teams that he’s no he’s “not just an average pick.”
- The Sixers are looking to move the No. 28 overall pick ahead of the draft, Kyle Neubeck of Philly Voice. Philadelphia is open to dealing for either a veteran player or simply net a future asset in exchange for the selection. The franchise is in win-now mode and unless one of the more polished prospect drops to them (Oregon’s Chris Duarte comes to mind, though that’s just my speculation), trading away the pick makes sense for Daryl Morey & Co.
- Potential Top-5 pick Jonathan Kuminga said he tries to model his game after Kobe Bryant, someone he watched closely growing up, as our own Sameer Kumar relayed. “That’s really the person I’m trying to model,” the wing said while adding that he plans on displaying the “Mamba Mentality” throughout his NBA career.
- The Magic are open to trading the No. 8 overall pick, as we previously relayed. Orlando received that pick via the Bulls in the Nikola Vucevic deal at the 2021 NBA Trade Deadline
Read More on the NBA Draft
- Mock Draft 5.0 (Lottery): Warriors land wing, athletic forward
- NBA Draft Buzz: Rockets, Green, Cavaliers, Barnes, Raptors
- Wizards Draft: Could Trey Murphy be a fit at No. 15?
