LeBron James has once again heaped praise on Australian rising star Josh Giddey — and Oklahoma City’s promising young core — while speaking ahead of Monday’s All-Star Game.
James, who earlier this month broke the NBA’s all-time points scoring record while playing against Giddey’s Thunder, was asked what he made of the Australian’s game.
The Lakers superstar was glowing in his assessment of Giddey when asked a similar question at All-Star weekend last year and he was just as complimentary this time around.
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“Josh Giddey’s really, really good, man,” James said.
“Obviously, a tall point guard. He’s a triple-double type of playmaker every single night because of his ability to rebound at his size, his instinctive passing, and he has the ability to score in the paint.
“I think he’s going to continue to get better and better.”
James echoed similar sentiments about Oklahoma City as a team, warning the rest of the league hasn’t even seen what the Thunder is like with Chet Holmgren — the No.2 pick from last year’s draft — on the floor.
Holmgren, for reference, was ruled out for the entire 2022-23 season after undergoing surgery on a foot injury he picked up in a game at Jamal Crawford’s CrawsOver Pro-Am League.
“They have a really good young core over in OKC, and they don’t even have Chet (Holmgren) there just yet,” James said.
“But Josh is a really good player along with other rookies that they have this year, and obviously, we know first-time (All-Star) Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) is really good, and the rest of that crew over there. (Giddey) is a pretty good player for sure. You guys should be proud.”
As mentioned earlier, it is not the first time James has spoken glowingly of Giddey, describing the Australian’s basketball as “beautiful” while speaking at All-Star weekend last year.
“It’s pretty special anytime you can have someone of that caliber to — even mention your name — but let alone to be giving you praise,” said Giddey at the time in response.
“He’s obviously somebody I’ve looked up to all my life, so to hear that was pretty cool.”
Even more cool though was the chance to share the court with James when he broke the record earlier this month.
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“Not many people thought this record would ever be broken. To be a part of history with one of the all-time greats is a special moment,” Giddey said, admitting he was “secretly hoping” James did it during the Thunder game.
“Just so I could be here and witness it, just as everyone else did,” the 20-year-old added.
“As a player, you also are a fan, and the things [LeBron] has done for the game over the last 20-or-so years, he’s inspired and has been a mentor to kids all around the world.
“He was to me. He was my favourite player growing up. To be on the floor and share history like we did tonight was special and it’s a record that never again in our lifetime will it be broken.”
