After a busy offseason, the Oklahoma City Thunder prepare for the 2024-25 campaign as a title favorite. They bolstered their depth with the additions of Isaiah Hartenstein and Alex Caruso.
Even though the improvements are no-brainers, that doesn’t mean the Thunder left the offseason unscathed. OKC made the tough — but right — decision to part ways with Josh Giddey.
After he refused to come off the bench for next season, the Thunder shipped the 21-year-old to the Chicago Bulls for Caruso. This marked the first major departure from the Thunder’s rebuild.
Giddey spent the last three seasons with the Thunder. After a strong first two years, he underwent his worst career campaign last season. A demotion in his role from a primary ball-handler to the fourth option led to that.
Despite this, Giddey remained a positive among his teammates. Chet Holmgren opened up about his departure in an appearance on Paul George’s “Podcast P” episode.
“I was f—ing hurt when I saw that Giddey wasn’t going to be on our team anymore,” Holmgren said. “We all rock with him. That’s our dog. Still is. He’s gonna go do great things in Chicago.”
Even though the Thunder replaced him with an easier fit in Caruso, that doesn’t mean the time spent among his teammates will be easy to wash away. Such is business in the NBA.
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