# 270: Josh Giddey (Part B)

An episode of [The Howie Games](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1146329262), 10 Jun 2026, 25 min.

Audio: https://enrichment.soundstack.com/4vjqq8/episode.flightcast.com/fd84ehm20tsoyw26p1hktz4l.mp3

He is one of Australia's biggest sporting stars. From suburban Melbourne courts to the bright lights of the NBA. From idolising Buddy Franklin, following Hawthorn religiously, and even taking a year away from basketball to focus on football, to the decision that ultimately changed his life forever. The Chicago Bulls star then takes us inside one of the defining moments of his career, his unforgettable game-winning buzzer beater over LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers. In a rare breakdown, Josh talks through the play, what he was thinking in the moment, why the shot was perhaps easier than people realise, and the surreal experience of seeing LeBron standing between him and a career highlight. He opens up about getting drafted into the NBA, adapting to life in America, representing Australia on the world stage, and the lessons learned from making it to the very top of professional basketball. This is a brilliant look inside the life of an Aussie thriving on the biggest basketball stage in the world. Checkout Courtside in Melbourne, a world-class facility designed for all players at every level - from grassroots talent to future NBL and NBA stars. *** Follow the Howie Games on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehowiegamespod/ Follow the Howie Games on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thehowiegames See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:02] listener production.
[0:07] You are listening to episode 270 of the Howie Games Part B featuring NBA star Josh Giddy.
[0:12] Do not forget to check out Josh's shoe, the Puma or Pro Nitro 2 Giddy.
[0:17] Let's join once again as Josh makes the move from OKC to Chicago.
[0:22] So you go to the Chicago Bulls.
[0:24] I started this like, again, as someone that's not obsessed with basketball.
[0:28] To me,
[0:30] Name one basketball team.
[0:31] I'm saying the Chicago Bulls.
[0:32] What is it like to walk into a basketball-mad city that was, you know, you're stepping on the shoulders of giants?
[0:40] Yeah.
[0:40] Oh, it's unbelievable.
[0:41] Is it?
[0:42] Yeah, it is.
[0:42] And the arena, like, I remember I did a –
[0:46] I did a school project on the United Center when I was in grade six or seven.
[0:50] I did a project on it.
[0:52] That just speaks to how famous the Bulls in that arena is.
[0:55] Yeah, Jordan has a statue there.
[0:57] The crowd is sold out every night.
[0:58] We lead the league in attendance every year.
[1:00] So the city of Chicago, the fans are very, very passionate, supportive.
[1:03] They're unbelievable.
[1:04] Yeah, obviously the weight that the Bulls, you know, and to your point, like if you go overseas to any small country and they have NBA merch, it's the Bulls.
[1:11] It is.
[1:11] It's the Lakers and the Bulls.
[1:12] So, yeah, they're a massive, massive club and, you know, I don't take it lightly or for granted that I'm able to play there.
[1:18] So the deal we signed at Chicago, this is where it really starts to spin my mind.
[1:26] Four years?
[1:27] Yep.
[1:28] $25 million US a year?
[1:29] Yep.
[1:30] Josh Giddey's patience on a new contract has finally been rewarded.
[1:33] The Chicago Bulls Guard has signed a four-year deal worth just over $150 million.
[1:40] Giddey and the Bulls had been at a stalemate for two months over a new deal.
[1:44] He joined the Bulls midway through last year after being traded by the eventual title holders, OKC.
[1:49] What's that like when it just pops in your bank account each month?
[1:52] Yeah, it's cool.
[1:54] That was the one like...
[1:57] that is generational wealth for you, your family.
[2:00] If you decide to have kids, their kids, I understand there's a responsibility with it, but it's, um, and all credit to you.
[2:06] Yeah.
[2:07] Yeah.
[2:07] It's, um, that, that was the one, like, as I said earlier, everyone plays, you play the NBA to kind of get that second deal and you want to stay in the NBA longterm.
[2:14] And yeah, I mean, like when I signed it, I probably didn't take it as like taking as much as I did.
[2:19] And, and like, I know a couple of days later I was on the plane to Chicago and I'm thinking like a hundred million dollars.
[2:24] Like it's a,
[2:25] It's a lot of money.
[2:26] I was like, I was like thinking about it.
[2:28] And, um, yeah, it's, it's obviously generational and, and I've always, I always wanted growing up, I always wanted to be in a position where I could take care of my family and my people around me.
[2:36] And obviously I was fortunate enough to do that.
[2:38] Um, even before I signed that contract.
[2:40] And, um, yeah, that, that was one thing I always wanted to do as a kid.
[2:43] I always wanted to just make sure my parents, my, my sisters were good for good forever.
[2:47] And, um,
[2:47] Yeah, that was the first thing that I thought of when I signed that.
[2:51] Yeah, obviously, we play and we work so hard to do these things and to get rewarded like that, you don't take a lot in, something I'm obviously very, very grateful for.
[2:59] Well, congratulations, mate.
[3:00] Dyson Daniel sat in the opposite studio a year and a half ago and then it came out, you pretty much signed similar deals at the same time.
[3:07] Did you splash out on anything?
[3:10] How old are you?
[3:10] 23, 23.
[3:11] Okay, so...
[3:13] If I'm 23, I'm spending some money.
[3:15] Yeah.
[3:16] What did you buy?
[3:18] What did I buy?
[3:18] Actually, I bought a watch the same day, same day I signed.
[3:21] Okay.
[3:21] A nice watch?
[3:22] Yeah.
[3:22] It wasn't a Swatch watch, obviously.
[3:24] No, it was a Rolex.
[3:25] Right.
[3:25] But I'd been into watches before that.
[3:28] And funnily enough, I was actually going to get the watch that day.
[3:30] So it just happened to be the same day I signed the contract.
[3:32] I went to pick it up.
[3:33] But yeah, I don't know.
[3:35] Are you a car guy?
[3:37] I was.
[3:37] I've had a fair few.
[3:38] I kind of cycle through them, but I'm not- Favorite one?
[3:41] Five.
[3:42] I mean, I've had a bunch.
[3:42] Probably Lamborghini was like a dream one I wanted to have.
[3:45] Can you squeeze into it?
[3:46] Yeah, it's a Eurus, like an SUV.
[3:48] So it's a pretty big car.
[3:49] I fit in it pretty comfortably.
[3:49] A lot of guys have it.
[3:50] So you had a Lamborghini.
[3:51] What else have you had in there?
[3:53] Porsche, Corvette, BMW.
[3:55] I've had a fair few cars, so I've cycled through them.
[3:57] But yeah, I'm not a big car guy.
[3:59] I don't know a lot about cars or anything.
[4:00] I just like how they look.
[4:01] And watches would be the one for me that I'm pretty obsessed with and
[4:04] Yeah.
[4:05] We had a series with Joe Maguire, the College Diaries, where he took us all through his life at Ohio State and the Buckeyes, and he was describing the car park, and that was college football.
[4:14] So I can't imagine what your car park is like at the United Center.
[4:18] But what I love is that you guys have – you know, at school –
[4:23] Back when I went to school, way in the dark ages, it was called Mufti, where you could wear whatever you want to school.
[4:28] Obviously, you have that in the NBA, where I love the showtime of it, where people get to express themselves.
[4:33] I'm going to get Tommy to put up a photo, and I want you to describe what you're wearing, and I want you to meet, because I looked at various outfits you'd rolled, and this is the one where I thought, I really like what I'm seeing.
[4:42] It's how much effort do the boys put into what they're wearing?
[4:44] A lot.
[4:45] A lot.
[4:45] A lot of guys will do it, yeah.
[4:46] Do they have the stylist or?
[4:47] Some guys do.
[4:48] I don't.
[4:48] I've always shopped and dressed myself, but a lot of guys do have stylists, yep.
[4:51] And if we were on a long road trip, say we're playing five games on the road.
[4:54] Well, you need a few suitcases.
[4:55] There you go.
[4:56] It's not carry-on, is it?
[4:56] Guys are packing five, six outfits.
[4:58] Guys will shop on the road to buy new stuff.
[5:00] So, yeah, a lot goes into it.
[5:01] It's a full-time gig.
[5:03] And is there much of a discussion amongst teammates about, you know, you're looking good, yeah, I'm not sure about where you're in there?
[5:07] Yeah, guys will comment on it.
[5:08] Okay.
[5:09] Guys will comment on outfits.
[5:10] We'll have a look at it here.
[5:10] So, I love this.
[5:12] You need to describe.
[5:15] A board shorts man like myself.
[5:16] You need to describe what you're wearing and where you got it from because I think you've pulled it off.
[5:20] Thank you.
[5:21] Yeah, the jacket is a brand called Givenchy.
[5:24] Okay, what color is it?
[5:25] It's purple.
[5:26] Right.
[5:26] It's a purple, like big fur jacket.
[5:29] The bag is Louis Vuitton.
[5:31] But it's a turquoise Louis Vuitton, which I haven't seen that before.
[5:34] Yeah, it is.
[5:36] It's called a speedy duffel bag.
[5:38] What's it costing me if I want to buy a speedy duffel bag?
[5:41] It cost me 17 AUD.
[5:44] Okay, that's a good bag.
[5:46] Yeah, yeah.
[5:46] I got it when I was here, actually, at Chadston, funnily enough.
[5:49] Right, okay, okay.
[5:50] Pants and black T-shirt, nothing.
[5:52] Nothing.
[5:53] And some sharp sunnies.
[5:54] What type of wheels?
[5:55] They're called Rick Owens.
[5:56] Okay.
[5:56] Well, they'd be Pumas now.
[5:57] Yeah, now they are.
[5:58] They'd be Pumas now.
[5:59] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[6:00] Okay.
[6:00] So, like, how many different outfits you got in your cupboard?
[6:02] I got a lot.
[6:03] I got a ton of clothes.
[6:04] I actually got rid of a lot this year as well because it was taking up so much room in my house.
[6:07] But yeah, I got a lot of jackets.
[6:09] And the big jackets like that, they take up a lot of room.
[6:12] So, I got a fair few.
[6:13] I like it.
[6:14] So, before...
[6:17] How much do you reckon the shot from on the halfway mark did for Josh Giddey and your brand?
[6:26] Growing up in Melbourne, Josh Giddey could have only dreamed of the day that he'd sink a buzzer beater in the NBA.
[6:32] Today, he fulfilled that fantasy.
[6:34] The 22-year-old Chicago Bulls star hit a shot from half court to take down no less than the LA Lakers.
[6:41] An incredible moment that could now land him a hefty.
[6:44] Payday.
[6:45] A lot.
[6:45] I think... Expined.
[6:47] Well, I think the first part was it's like Bulls versus Lakers.
[6:50] So it's a big game, irrespective of what happens.
[6:53] And, you know, the two guys in front of me when I shot the ball were Luka and LeBron.
[6:56] So that probably made it even bigger as well.
[6:58] But, yeah, obviously, you know, the shot went in.
[7:02] But I think the whole game got a lot of attention because it was locked.
[7:04] We were down eight points for 10 seconds.
[7:06] So the game was over until, you know, that shot went in, obviously.
[7:08] But, yeah, obviously, that's one I'll never forget.
[7:11] And...
[7:12] Yes, I don't know if I'll ever do that again.
[7:14] Have you got a photo over there?
[7:16] Yeah, they are.
[7:17] They made a massive, probably the size of the screen, like a canvas kind of of it.
[7:21] Yeah, so, yeah, I got it.
[7:23] Well, I need to set this up properly because I'll get this wrong.
[7:26] Bulls have a left-to-two run here.
[7:28] A lot of time left.
[7:31] This is as close as they have been since trailing by 18 in this quarter.
[7:36] Giddey, baseline, blocking foul at one.
[7:42] Here we go.
[7:43] Two possession game now.
[7:44] Giddey.
[7:45] Back to Kevin for three.
[7:47] Goal!
[7:47] Give me the hands off, Kevin Herter.
[7:50] Here we go.
[7:51] That is the fifth triple-double for Giddey.
[7:54] Big possession for both sides.
[7:57] So we come in.
[7:58] You're down by five with 12.6 seconds left, and there's a timeout.
[8:04] You guys have got the ball.
[8:06] So with 12.6 seconds left,
[8:09] So I want to know how much influence a coach has here in this discussion.
[8:12] Yeah.
[8:12] So what's your coach saying with 12.6 seconds on the clock when you're five points down?
[8:17] So he drew up a play.
[8:18] So we call it – we're coming out of timeout now and the play – we drew up a play on the whiteboard.
[8:23] And the play here was to get Kobe White, who's number zero.
[8:25] He's kind of on his hands and knees in front of that Bull logo.
[8:29] The play was for him to get to the top of the key and shoot a three, but they took it away.
[8:32] So –
[8:34] I was the one getting in the bowl and they took it away, so I had to throw it somewhere else before I got a five-second violation.
[8:38] And then I threw it to – I think I threw it to Vooch, who's our big guy on the elbow.
[8:41] Well, let's have a look.
[8:42] Let's roll it a bit here, Tommy.
[8:44] 12.6 on the clock, down by five.
[8:45] 12 seconds left.
[8:46] Bulls have to hurry.
[8:48] Josh throws it in.
[8:49] It's a quick pass to Williams.
[8:50] Big shot for three.
[8:51] Good.
[8:52] So Williams nails the three.
[8:54] So you're down by two.
[8:55] Yep.
[8:56] Game goes on.
[8:57] Three left.
[8:58] Oh, who's more?
[8:59] Did he?
[9:00] The steal.
[9:00] And then bang.
[9:01] That's you.
[9:02] With a steal.
[9:02] Yeah.
[9:03] Yeah.
[9:04] And so the guy you whipped it straight out to, there's no playbook here.
[9:07] Are you playing on instinct at this point?
[9:08] Yeah, so this is one where we had a timeout, but we're never going to use it here.
[9:12] This is as good as a look we're going to get to win the game.
[9:15] So the coach could have called a timeout?
[9:16] Yeah, when I got the steal, he could have, but he let us play and I got the steal and throwback to Kobe hits a three and we go up one.
[9:23] So they obviously called a timeout.
[9:25] Now we're up one.
[9:25] Okay, let's roll that, Tommy.
[9:28] What?
[9:28] Big time players make big time plays.
[9:34] Kobe, wait.
[9:35] Sub-Zero.
[9:36] Big, big, big.
[9:38] What a wild sequence.
[9:40] And the Cardiac Bulls have done it again.
[9:44] Ow.
[9:44] Elizabeth.
[9:45] Elizabeth.
[9:46] It's the big one.
[9:47] I'm coming, Elizabeth.
[9:48] Oh, Lord.
[9:50] I can't believe this.
[9:51] The Cardiac Bulls.
[9:54] Everybody thought it was over.
[9:56] It's never over.
[9:56] Never.
[9:57] Not with this team.
[9:59] A lot.
[10:00] So now the Bulls are up by one.
[10:02] Yeah.
[10:02] So you've picked up five points in six seconds.
[10:04] There's 6.1 seconds on the clock.
[10:06] Yeah.
[10:06] Crowd's going mad.
[10:07] So what happens now?
[10:09] So now the Lakers call a timeout and they get to, it's called advancing the ball.
[10:12] So instead of inbounding the ball from under their hoop, they get to bring the ball up the sideline and advance it in their front half.
[10:17] So what's your coach's approach now with six seconds on the clock?
[10:21] They're in possession, but you're up by a point.
[10:22] So we're up by a point.
[10:23] If we had a foul to give here, we could foul them straight away and make them take the ball out again on the side.
[10:28] But we didn't have a foul.
[10:29] If we fouled, we would have put them at the free-to-line to shoot two shots.
[10:32] So we had no fouls to give.
[10:34] When they inbound, we were switching everything.
[10:35] So if there was a screen, we're switching.
[10:39] No, no, no, it does because this shows the amount of work that goes in because American sport, like the NFL, it stops.
[10:45] And there's time for this planning as opposed to the footy we go and watch tonight.
[10:48] So I love the explanation, mate.
[10:49] Yeah, so timeout and we go over everything.
[10:52] We're switching one through five, which means everybody's switching out.
[10:55] Our point guard to our center, everyone's switching everything before the ball comes inbounds.
[10:59] When it gets inbounds, we're switching everything off ball, on ball screens.
[11:02] We obviously messed it up because they got a layup and scored.
[11:04] Well, let's have a look.
[11:05] Let's have a look.
[11:05] Donchich took the final shot before that.
[11:08] Here's Reeves.
[11:09] Reeves straight to the cup.
[11:14] Plays it in to take the lead.
[11:15] So Reeves with a layup, 3.3 seconds on the clock.
[11:17] They lead by one.
[11:18] So something defensively broke down for you guys there?
[11:20] Yeah, so we are – well, to be honest, it was probably me.
[11:23] I'm instantly – yeah, I know.
[11:25] Hang on.
[11:25] I know.
[11:26] So we have a thing called a low man, which is when your man is on the opposite side of the ball, you're meant to be across the floor, kind of in that restricted area under the hoop and –
[11:34] I was meant to be there, and that was probably my mistake.
[11:38] But anyway, before that, we spoke about if they scored, we had no timeouts left, so we had to get the ball in quick and try to go, and I tried to get it to Kobe and threw it off the pad on the sideline.
[11:46] He had nowhere to go.
[11:47] He threw it back to me.
[11:48] So there's no plan at this stage to get it into your hands?
[11:51] Well, it was originally going to – well, I was inbound the ball, and I was trying to get it to Kobe.
[11:56] He's the butt that just got it.
[11:57] got the three-pointer.
[11:58] Yeah, he just hit the three and he's our best shooter so we get it to him, let him race up the floor and you trust him to make a good play but he's denied.
[12:05] I couldn't get it to him so I threw it to Pat.
[12:07] Roll it a bit, Tommy.
[12:10] So we throw it to Pat.
[12:11] Get ready to stop it though, Tommy and Pat has no one.
[12:13] There's one timeouts.
[12:14] Two seconds left.
[12:16] Get him for the win.
[12:17] Pause, pause, pause.
[12:18] Right.
[12:19] So, you know when you go to the footy tonight, right, and you see every AFL footballer as they're going down the race start trying to kick goals from the boundary, right?
[12:29] So I coached an under-14 team last year and would say, okay, end of the day, right, have shots for goal.
[12:34] And no one wants to go directly in front and have a shot.
[12:35] They all want to do it from the boundary.
[12:37] So...
[12:38] So you're, I'll explain to people how far away you are in a moment, but what you're about to do, is this something you practice before you walk off the court or is this something you never do?
[12:47] Where do you sit on this?
[12:48] All the time.
[12:48] It'd be like guys kicking it from the race.
[12:50] Like all the time we shoot this shot and it's probably an easier shot than people think.
[12:54] Like it looks, obviously it looks like it's a long way, and it is, but we shoot it a lot more than people would think.
[12:59] And guys practice it, not practice it, but we just mess around and we always shoot it.
[13:03] Do you know how far it was?
[13:04] Oh, it would have been 50 feet.
[13:07] 47 feet.
[13:07] Yeah.
[13:08] 14.3 meters.
[13:09] Yeah.
[13:09] So the longest ever was Devontae Graham for the Pelicans.
[13:13] Shane Gilchrist-Alexander credit as Devontae sends it.
[13:16] Gets it!
[13:17] Gets it!
[13:18] The game winner!
[13:19] Oh, wow!
[13:20] Devontae Graham stuns him in Oklahoma City.
[13:23] Just how you drew it up!
[13:24] After the Pels were shocked by Shane Gilchrist-Alexander.
[13:28] Against my team.
[13:29] Against your team.
[13:30] Yep.
[13:30] 61 feet or 18.59 meters.
[13:31] But...
[13:34] Yours, this shot that you're about to take, if you make it, will be the ninth longest buzzer beater in the history of the NBA.
[13:42] Okay.
[13:42] That's top 10.
[13:44] Okay.
[13:45] Have you got any thought or I've just got to chuck this in?
[13:47] Well, I would have preferred to get closer, but I've got 1.6 seconds left.
[13:51] I've got a guy in front of me.
[13:52] This, I thought, was the best shot we could get.
[13:54] Who's the guy in front of you?
[13:55] LeBron.
[13:56] So that would be a cat called LeBron James, a reasonably well-known character.
[13:59] Yeah, he's standing in front of me.
[14:00] And now our big fella's right there next to him as well.
[14:03] So I don't have a lot of room to go.
[14:04] And I'm thinking one second left.
[14:05] This is probably the best shot I'm going to get.
[14:07] And I had to just let it fly and shot it with confidence.
[14:09] And it felt good out of the hands.
[14:10] Roll it, Tommy.
[14:11] Roll it.
[14:12] There's a lot of timeouts.
[14:14] Two seconds left.
[14:15] Giddy for the win.
[14:23] Elizabeth!
[14:24] I'm coming, baby!
[14:25] My God!
[14:27] Improbable!
[14:29] Unbelievable!
[14:30] Impossible!
[14:31] Magic getting... Good day, man!
[14:34] Somewhere in Australia, Sydney or Melbourne, Paul Hogan is somewhere in Crocodile Dundee.
[14:41] Stop it.
[14:42] Stop it there.
[14:42] Say g'day, mate.
[14:43] Somewhere in Australia, Paul Hogan, Crocodile Dundee.
[14:46] My favourite part of that whole clip was the director who's taken a shot, we can take these headsets off now, of the Lakers fan.
[14:51] Yeah.
[14:52] This is one shot of a solo Lakers bloke and he is stunned.
[14:55] Moments after that, take me into the – that's iconic.
[14:59] Yeah.
[15:00] It's amazing when you watch it back.
[15:01] I smile and you smile.
[15:03] Yeah.
[15:03] He's a bad man.
[15:05] He's a bad man.
[15:06] What?
[15:09] What the did I just look at?
[15:11] I never made a game winner before.
[15:12] I made a couple of layups to put us up with a couple seconds left, but I walk off like that from half court I've never done before.
[15:18] Yeah, obviously the shot and then the crowd went nuts and celebrated with teammates.
[15:22] And then, yeah, it went back into the locker room.
[15:24] And obviously the guys were all pumped, excited.
[15:26] And yeah, it was probably one of them like euphoric, like high moments.
[15:30] And that was a high, I don't know if I've ever been on like, you know, hit a game winner like that.
[15:35] And there was obviously global attention on it.
[15:37] And yeah, it was something I'll never forget.
[15:41] And then I came in the next morning, they had a massive canvas of the shot, like kind of me holding my follow through.
[15:45] So yeah, it was a really cool moment.
[15:46] Happy it went in.
[15:47] Pack on it back to me out.
[15:48] Very happy you got the win.
[15:50] Big win.
[15:51] We needed it.
[15:52] Pack round tonight.
[15:53] They were unbelievable.
[15:54] Got us back in the game.
[15:55] So huge win and keep us momentum rolling.
[16:02] More of Josh shortly.
[16:03] Next Monday.
[16:04] Monday.
[16:04] Put it in your die.
[16:05] The Big Big Clive.
[16:07] The Big Five episode number two drops.
[16:10] We are talking sporting male goats.
[16:13] Mine, Chiefs, plus yours, the audience.
[16:16] Now, narrowing this down to five, beyond hard.
[16:21] Beyond hard, but fun.
[16:22] And here's the thing.
[16:24] I had to leave a motion out of some of them because I put one in that I actually don't like to blow.
[16:31] But his record's so good he had to go in.
[16:33] Are you going to name which one that is when you get to it?
[16:35] Oh, I have to guess that.
[16:36] No, I'll tell you.
[16:37] Right, right.
[16:37] It's number five.
[16:38] I'm telling you right now.
[16:39] I didn't want to put him in, but I had to.
[16:41] That is male sporting goats in next Monday's drop of The Big Five with The Chief.
[16:46] Check it out in your Howie Games feed.
[16:49] The Big Big Five.
[16:54] Let's get back to Josh.
[16:55] How do you go about fostering – again, we refer back to the footy we're going tonight.
[17:00] Boys that have played a long time together have formed friendships.
[17:04] And generally, there's a lot more trading, but no one near as trading as your caper.
[17:08] So how do you –
[17:10] How do you foster a real positive team dynamic when guys are coming and going and it is such a business?
[17:17] Like I'm sure there's days you turn up and, oh, mate's been sent off somewhere else.
[17:20] Yeah.
[17:21] I'll never forget it.
[17:22] My first year, first time I ever experienced it, I was in –
[17:26] Okay, see, we're playing in LA and it's the morning of a game and we're going to like a shoot round, like it'd be a captain's run here or whatever.
[17:34] And it's the day before the trade deadline.
[17:36] And this is when a lot of stuff happens, like guys will get traded because teams will wait to the last minute to try and negotiate trades, whatever.
[17:42] We're training at UCLA and our GM walks in and pulls two guys out.
[17:47] And I never saw them again.
[17:48] In training?
[17:48] Yeah.
[17:49] Middle of training.
[17:50] They just got traded just like that and I never saw them and that was it.
[17:53] Wow.
[17:54] Yeah, it happened.
[17:55] That was the first time I'd ever witnessed it and experienced it.
[17:57] And it's just like that.
[17:57] And you build relations with guys.
[17:59] And this year was fantastic.
[18:01] by far for me, the most chaotic trade deadline ever been.
[18:04] We lost eight guys in the deadline, and it happened over multiple days.
[18:07] We're in Milwaukee, a few guys get traded.
[18:08] We fly to Toronto, a few guys got traded there.
[18:11] And these guys, when they get traded, they're not going back to Chicago.
[18:13] They're flying to the team they got traded to.
[18:15] So they're going straight to play the next day.
[18:16] And we're getting guys.
[18:18] We had a team in Toronto.
[18:19] We had three guys starting the game who we landed in Toronto that morning.
[18:23] That morning.
[18:24] That we'd never met.
[18:25] They just got traded there.
[18:26] So it's a whirlwind, and guys are coming and going.
[18:29] So how do you foster that?
[18:31] We're in it for the team.
[18:32] Yeah.
[18:32] Which is what you grew up with.
[18:34] Yeah, the guys that are there are the ones that kind of have to rally everyone together.
[18:37] And this year especially, this was so unique for me because we had half the team leave.
[18:41] And, you know, I was probably one of the guys that had to try and rally the group.
[18:44] And some of our older guys that had been there before, we just had to try and keep everyone together.
[18:47] And I was out injured.
[18:48] I wasn't even playing at the time.
[18:49] So it was tough.
[18:50] And I felt like I wasn't directly a part of the team.
[18:52] I just wasn't playing because I was injured.
[18:53] And, yeah, it's a whirlwind.
[18:56] time of the year for every team this year, us more so than anybody else, just because of how many guys we had coming and going.
[19:02] After the All-Star break, you were outstanding.
[19:04] It is a new career high, 32 for Giddey.
[19:09] Congratulations on what you did in the back end of the season.
[19:11] So your current contract at Chicago...
[19:16] So an unrestricted free agent?
[19:19] So no.
[19:19] So will you be playing for Chicago this upcoming season?
[19:22] Yeah, yeah, I will be.
[19:22] Okay.
[19:23] I was – the end of last year, I was restricted.
[19:26] Right.
[19:26] So this year – I've signed a four-year deal.
[19:29] So is that money guaranteed?
[19:30] Yeah, all four years.
[19:30] No matter what happens?
[19:31] No matter what happens.
[19:32] Yeah, all four.
[19:32] And then once I get to my – the end of that – or the end of your – a year before your contract is up is when you can renegotiate and sign a new one.
[19:38] Or if you wait to the end of the fourth, you become unrestricted.
[19:41] So for me –
[19:43] I don't know what's going to happen in two years, but I can renegotiate after my third year of this contract and then see what happens.
[19:48] Or I can wait until my fourth and I become unrestricted and go anywhere I want.
[19:51] So it's similar to the AFL in that sense.
[19:53] With all the work that you're doing, and I know you work out constantly here in Australia talking to Tunners and stuff about it, what's your ceiling?
[20:02] If you were at – as a percentage, how much better can you get as a basketballer playing in the NBA, training, absorbing, listening, watching, working?
[20:12] I think a lot.
[20:13] I think... Oh, I'm only 23, so I feel like I've got so many more years to...
[20:18] to get better, get stronger.
[20:19] I feel like I'll grow into my body more and more as I get older.
[20:22] And I think, you know, the guys that, this time of the year, I think is when guys really separate themselves because it's easy to relax and go on a vacation.
[20:29] But I've always, every year, I've always tried to come back and I always try and take a couple of weeks off, but I never can.
[20:34] I just, I'm so itching to get back into the gym and working out again.
[20:37] And my trainer is, he's with me full time.
[20:40] So as soon as we get back, we're like, we're both ready to get straight to it.
[20:42] But,
[20:43] Yeah, I think the off-seasons when players separate themselves and I've always, always made basketball and anything to do with getting better the number one priority.
[20:52] It takes pre-sense over everything.
[20:53] And I have to miss out on things.
[20:58] I don't ever say, oh, I'm going to go to the footy instead of workout or I'm going to do this instead of workout.
[21:02] It always comes at the top of the list.
[21:03] And it's the only way for me I see myself continuing to get better.
[21:06] The day I start
[21:08] putting things ahead of it, or I'll work out tomorrow, I'll do it later, is the day I feel like I'm not going to continue to get better and better.
[21:14] So there's 450 jobs in the NBA, and there's millions and millions of people around the world that are trying to take my job.
[21:20] So I feel like as soon as I start letting up, that's when I give guys a chance to come in and take my job.
[21:25] So I don't want that to happen.
[21:26] And that's why I've always found myself working so hard.
[21:29] And I never want to be satisfied where I am and continuing to find ways to get better.
[21:33] That flows into what we typically ask as the final question on the podcast.
[21:37] And it's
[21:37] It's a brilliant chat, mate.
[21:38] I was so excited about it.
[21:40] And thanks for taking us into your world.
[21:41] And again, your success is fantastic.
[21:44] I'm sure the shoe will sell out, the Outback, and it'll continue your way to Chicago.
[21:48] But I always finish this way.
[21:51] You are living out your childhood dream.
[21:53] For those kids, we're lucky, mate.
[21:54] There's a lot of kids that listen to this podcast with their parents.
[21:57] They might be on the way to basketball practice.
[21:58] They might be on the way to footy practice.
[21:59] They might be on the way to concert pianist work.
[22:03] It doesn't matter what they want to be.
[22:05] from your young age, the success you've achieved, what advice would you pass on to the youngsters that are listening?
[22:10] I'd say dream big.
[22:11] I'd say, and as cliche as it sounds, like really dream, and don't let people tell you what you can or can't do in terms of don't ever let somebody like put a ceiling on you or put a cap on you.
[22:22] I think that there's always so much room for growth.
[22:24] And for me, that's what I found.
[22:26] I always found that, that,
[22:28] Anytime someone tried to put a ceiling on me or a cap on me, I'd always want to... That became my next goal.
[22:32] I always wanted to keep getting better and better.
[22:34] And I think whatever it is in life you want to do, like go after it.
[22:38] Go after it.
[22:39] I think if you try and half-ass something, that's when you start to fall short of goals.
[22:42] When you really want to do something and you put...
[22:44] you make it the top priority of your list.
[22:46] I think that's when you see results and you see things start to happen that you want to happen.
[22:49] And that can be, if you want to be an accountant, if you want to be an NBA, an AFL, whatever you want to be, like if you do it and you commit to it and you put it at the top of your priority list, things can happen.
[22:58] And I always, always made sure basketball was number one for me when I wanted to take it serious and get to the NBA.
[23:04] And I never thought it was possible.
[23:05] And I look back
[23:07] six years now and I am where I am today.
[23:10] So yeah, I'd say dream big.
[23:11] And as cliche as it sounds, I really do think anything is possible.
[23:15] And when you put your mind to something and you want to do it, you're going to do it.
[23:18] We haven't even got to the boomers.
[23:19] We'll have to wait that till part two.
[23:20] But mate, congratulations on your eloquence, your excellence, your ability to stay grounded in an unusual world.
[23:26] And-
[23:27] the way you represent your country on the world stage.
[23:30] That's all we spoke about here when that went in for the Bulls.
[23:33] It went right in the entire country.
[23:34] So you probably don't understand how much of a positive role model you are in the country.
[23:37] So congratulations, mate.
[23:38] Long continue with you.
[23:39] And thanks for having a chat on the Howie Games, mate.
[23:41] Thanks for having me, Howie.
[23:42] I appreciate it.
[23:45] What a life Josh Giddey is living.
[23:47] Hard to get your head around that, really.
[23:48] May his career continue to flourish.
[23:52] Do not forget to check out our brand new content with the chief, Jason Dunstall.
[23:55] The Big Five Sporting Movies has already dropped episode one.
[23:58] You can see it in the feed.
[24:00] This Monday, the Big Five Male Sports Greatest of All Time, the GOATS.
[24:06] Until then, peace and love.
[24:09] And we can do it if we try, try, try.
[24:16] If we try, try, try If we try, try, try

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