In a dominating win, Josh Giddey quickly proved why his head coach was justified for dubbing him the face of the program at just 20 years old.
Giddey headlined Australia’s lopsided 97-41 win over Venezuela in their first exhibition game. A 27-7 second-quarter scoring advantage helped put this game to bed as Australia entered halftime with a commanding 54-23 lead that essentially turned the second half into garbage time.
The talent gap between teams was quickly evident as Giddey toyed Venezuela with flashy thread-the-needle passes throughout the contest. In 24 minutes, he collected 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, nine assists and eight rebounds for the near triple-double. On the flip side, he also committed six turnovers as he was a bit more daring with his playmaking this game.
Fellow Oklahoma City Thunder player Jack White also appeared in this exhibition for Australia. In 16 minutes off the bench, he finished with four points and eight rebounds. He signed a two-year deal with OKC this offseason.
The full box for the Boomers can be viewed below:
Let’s look at instant reactions and highlights from Giddey’s Team Australia debut as they prepare to play in the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
Giddey has looked really good as the main ball-handler so far
pic.twitter.com/Rw7owaYsas— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) August 14, 2023
Dominating the 1st quarter, this spin move might’ve been Giddey’s best play yet
pic.twitter.com/LvwAzNgcnW— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) August 14, 2023
Giddey has punished Venezuela for not being able to set its defense fully. pic.twitter.com/447TWH8oJg
— 𝓕 🪄 (@Fiizop) August 14, 2023
Josh Giddey with an aggressive drive to the rim is really encouraging spinning through the lane + dominating in transition. Really good stuff from him and two areas he showed a lot of growth in as the NBA season progressed last year.
— Rylan Stiles (@Rylan_Stiles) August 14, 2023
The advantages of having a 6’9 PG in this clip. Giddey pacing and sees over the top for the easy layup the league-average-sized guard probably couldn't. pic.twitter.com/ZPgHSw9hVK
— 𝓕 🪄 (@Fiizop) August 14, 2023
Josh Giddey having a nice chat as Australia leads by 41 points pic.twitter.com/TFWCEU3uL2
— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) August 14, 2023
Game one, win one 💪
The Boomers kicked off their pre-World Cup tournament in style against Venezuela 🕺
Next up, Brazil 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/0S6u7mbQp7
— NBL (@NBL) August 14, 2023
Josh Giddey was the best player on the floor today in Australia
MIP coming 🔜 pic.twitter.com/dknfBj9GMH
— ThunderChets (@ThunderChats) August 14, 2023
Josh Giddey in 24 minutes for Team Australia
14 points
9 assists
8 rebounds
1 block
5/7 FGA
4/5 FTA
+29Near triple double 👀 pic.twitter.com/1vmqblaW8J
— TF (@ThunderFocus) August 14, 2023
Straight up can’t remember Giddey ever crossing somebody up like that in the open court lol he’s coming different this season 🫨 pic.twitter.com/cFRvQ2pEt5
— ThunderChets (@ThunderChats) August 14, 2023
Giddey against Venezuela
He looks faster, and more in control
It will be really interesting to see him with Chet this season pic.twitter.com/NCZq04PRkU
— Andrew Schlecht (@AndrewKSchlecht) August 14, 2023
