Tag: Podcast P

Chet Holmgren opens up about Josh Giddey trade, said he was hurt over his exit

Chet Holmgren opens up about Josh Giddey trade, said he was hurt over his exit.

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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Chet Holmgren addresses rivalry with Victor Wembanyama, claims there’s no beef

Chet Holmgren addresses rivalry with Victor Wembanyama, claims there’s no beef.

As new powerhouses emerge in the Western Conference, expect the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs to return to their glory days.

That also comes with the bonus of seeing Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama square it off in high-stakes environments.

Both seven-footers have been compared to each other throughout their basketball journeys. The similarities are astonishing. They are generational defensive talent who can handle and shoot the ball. They both went top two in back-to-back draft classes and headlined last year’s rookie class.

Despite that, Holmgren doesn’t believe his rivalry with Wembanyama is personal. It stays within the court as two highly-competitive individuals fight it out.

The 22-year-old addressed this in a recent Paul George’s “Podcast P” episode.

“I would just say us being competitors,” Holmgren said. “We played against each other before we were even in the NBA. People be like ‘Y’all got beef?’

“I’m like, ‘Beef? We’re out there competing, but beef means when I see you we’re fighting, you know what I mean?’ Why do I got beef with him? I honestly don’t even know the guy. We just play basketball against each other.”

Holmgren further explained that any animosity he might have toward Wembanyama is purely about trying to get wins. Both players have done an admirable job of avoiding taking shots at one another when given the opportunity.

“As competitors, neither of us wants to lose, and neither of us wants to let the other person get a bucket or anything,” Holmgren said. “We’re always going to compete and if people take it as we got beef, those people don’t really understand competing I guess.”

This is a pretty reasonable answer at one of the league’s juiciest rivalries. It’s evident how badly it wants Chet vs. Wemby to become a storyline as all three of the Thunder’s matchup against the Spurs will be on national television next season.

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