Welcome to Chicago Josh Giddey, What's Your Role?

On Tuesday, Jun. 25, 2024, Josh Giddey was formally introduced as a member of the Chicago Bulls following the trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder and took questions from media members.

Josh Giddey's press conference lasted approximately 17 minutes and predictably included questions about Giddey's 2024 playoff experience, which included a dubious benching in the Thunder's second-round series against the Dallas Mavericks, along with questions regarding a closed off-court investigation involving Giddey.

Perhaps the most prominent theme that echoed throughout the press conference centered on what role Josh Giddey will occupy on the 2024-25 Chicago Bulls Roster.  What nuances should Bulls fans take away from Giddey's presser comments related to his new role on the Bulls roster?

Why Did the Thunder Trade Josh Giddey?

Giddey, in response to the first press conference question by NBC Sports Chicago's K.C. Johnson, confirmed offseason conversations took place between him and Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti on the subject of Giddey moving to a bench role on the Thunder roster. Additional context was provided in Giddey's response, saying he "was playing, you know, more off-ball..than I ever did in my career."  Surrendering on-ball reps and the prospect of Giddey moving to a full-time bench role in OKC led Giddey to seek a trade from OKC.

What Does Giddey Need in His Bulls Role?

Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic posed a question to Josh Giddey to the effect of what did Giddey need to realize his full basketball potential with the Bulls? "It was gonna be hard to tap into my full potential, in my opinion, in a team like [Oklahoma City Thunder] where there was just so many talented guys who needed the ball in their hands", Giddey remarked to Mayberry. "I want to be the pass-first point guard I am", Giddey explained further in his answer to Darnell Mayberry.

Almost 10 minutes into Josh Giddey's press conference, two things became clear.  One, Josh Giddey was not comfortable with playing off-ball in OKC. Two, Giddey views himself primarily as a point guard. Bulls fans should logically conclude Josh Giddey is motivated to prove himself as a capable NBA point guard.

What are the Big Picture Implications of Josh Giddey's Trade to the Bulls?

Josh Giddey at multiple points in the press conference stated that he has not discussed his role or made assurances of what role he would have, despite already meeting with Bulls Management [Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley], Head Coach Billy Donovan and staff. To be fair, at the time of the press conference it may have been unreasonable for Giddey to have much discussion about his team role as their are many unanswered questions about the future of the Bulls roster between DeMar DeRozan's unrestricted free agency, Patrick Williams restricted free agency, and the Bulls actively shopping for Zach Lavine trade partners.

However, once the dust settles on the Bulls roster remodeling this offseason, there will be serious questions to answer regarding if Josh Giddey will be setup to truly succeed in Chicago. If Giddey ultimately needs the ball in his hand to successful, that should result in nothing less than dealing three ball dominant Bulls players named Zach Lavine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic. To a certain degree Patrick Williams also has had stretches where his offensive efficiency has depended on him playing on-ball.

How will Josh Giddey fit into a younger backcourt of Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu?  Coby White went on a prolific NBA Most Improved Player-worthy campaign during the 2023-24 NBA regular season as the Bulls starting point guard. Ayo Dosunmu also found resurgence in his game during the season thanks to his improved three-point shooting.

Giddey may be on the record as not having any promise as the Bulls next starting point guard. But if Giddey's self-identity is NBA point guard, is he going to be open to conflicts that may arise from a Bulls roster that at the moment is not constructed for Josh Giddey to be a ball-dominant, pass-first point guard?

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