Analyzing Josh Giddey in an Another NBL Game Against South East Melbourne

April 7^th, 2021

By Alan Lu

I took the time to watch Adelaide’s 6-7 point forward, Josh Giddey play in an NBL basketball game against South East Melbourne that took place on February 23^rd, with thanks to NBL’s Twitch Stream.  Here are my thoughts on how he fared on this day, as well as how his game may translate to the NBA. For those that are interested in the box score, here is the link.

Josh Giddey is a tall, skilled playmaker who has seen his draft stock soar, and he is currently projected to go in the late lottery of the 2021 draft.  In this game, he scored 15 points, and he had 10 assists, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals in his team’s win, and he is a versatile player that nearly was able to collect a triple-double to help his team get a victory. Giddey showed a solid ability to score off the dribble.  Though he lacks blazing speed, he is an agile player that tends to favor going to his left to score the basketball.  He was able to score on a smooth left-handed drive to the hoop to score off the glass.  He also drove up the court and used a behind-the-back dribble move to score on a strong switch of hands layup in transition.  Another time, he missed on a quick left-handed drive due to rushing.

He also shot the ball very well, especially from downtown.  Giddey has been up and down with his outside shot this year, but he excelled as a three-point shooter in this game.  He showed a knack for scoring on pull-up threes, and he can also dribble off screens to do so.  He also made an open three-another time.  Plus, he also made a contested pull-up, mid-range jumper from the right elbow.  On the downside, he struggled to knock down pull-up jumpers from the mid-range later on.

Also, Giddey displayed very good playmaking skills in this game.  He is a sound, creative playmaker that is a natural at running the point, and he would often throw sharp interior passes, as he can find teammates on the move to set up scores for them.  He passes well off the dribble, and he can throw quick, drive and kick passes to notch assists.  He has good court vision and the patient to consistently find the open man, and he can get his teammates even when facing significant ball pressure.  His strong court sense and ability to find his teammates allowed him to rack up numerous assists and scoring chances throughout this contest. 

Every once in a while though, he would throw hasty, inaccurate passes, and he threw an interior pass that got intercepted once, as he threw the ball to an area rather than a person that time.  Other times, he can sometimes get the ball poked away, as he ended up having a ball stolen away in the backcourt another time.  He also collided into an opponent in the backcourt off the ball late in this match, which led him to commit both an offensive foul and a turnover. He also did a very good job of rebounding the basketball.  Giddey would often leap up to get defensive boards, and he also managed to grab an impressive, one-handed offensive rebound midway through this match, and he showed a keen nose for the ball. 

Defensively though, he looked to be about average at best.  For the positives, Giddey did a good job of getting steals, and he is a roamer that can help his team force turnovers.  He was able to rotate to poke a ball away from a post player to get a steal, and he also chased down a loose ball off of an errant pass to collect another.  He also hustled back on defense and helped force an opponent to commit a ball-handling turnover early on due to his positioning and by applying solid ball pressure.  He also defended a ball handler aggressively to force a pass another time.

Sometimes though, he would commit touch fouls, as he would sometimes commit reach-in fouls, and another time he struggled to guard his man off the ball.  He also struggled to defend in screen situations, as he would tend to get caught or would take a bad angle, which would put his team in scramble situations.  Other times, he would sag too far off of shooters, and he also would sometimes not hustle back hard enough or contest shots despite being in the area.

Overall, Josh Giddey is a smart, skilled playmaker that has a good set of offensive skills, and his versatility on offense could enable him to excel in the NBA.  He can smoothly run the point, and he also has shown that he can capably play off the ball.  He will still need to be a more consistent outside shooter and a more focused position defender.  Still, he is a talented prospect that could end up going in the late lottery, and he could end up being a solid role player similar to Boston Celtics’ guard, Evan Fournier in the NBA.