On the second night of a back-to-back amid a condensed early schedule, Josh Giddey and the Chicago Bulls fell to a Ja Morant-less Memphis 142-131 on Sunday.
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A night after besting fellow Australian Dyson Daniels and his Atlanta Hawks, Giddey wasn’t quite able to produce to the same scoring degree but remained his facilitative self against the Grizzlies.
The fourth-year guard — whose shortcomings on either end of the floor have been the subject of persistent criticism this year — finished with 12 points on 50 per cent shooting, eight assists, seven rebounds and two blocks.
Along with the other four Chicago starters, Giddey was in the plus-minus negative as a tiring Bulls outfit fell to 7-11 on the season.
Giddey shoves Daniels to set up the dunk | 00:16
Giddey shot and missed a three inside the first minute of the game but remained aggressive in pushing the pace offensively, and as is one of his most appealing traits, he kept his head on a swivel as he surveyed passing options.
The drive-and-dish was working for him in the first half — halfway through the second period, a downhill-driving Giddey found rookie forward Matas Buzelis in the corner for an open three-pointer.
Then he found his jump-shooting groove, draining a three from the wing as the Bulls kept pace with the visitors.
Giddey blocks Daniels posterizer! | 00:30
Having found momentum and improving as the game went on, Giddey capped his half with a look-ahead dish in transition that resulted in a thunderous Buzelis slam, before a drag-stepping finish of his own — with his left hand — impressed the home attendance.
By half-time, Giddey had tallied seven points on 3-6 shooting and accumulated six assists. He was a minus-three.
The encouraging signs continued into the third quarter as the 6’8 playmaker knocked down his second triple.
“Once he gets that (shooting) stroke down, and then gets his defence down, he’s going to be … wow,” Chicago Sports Network analyst Stacey King said.
Soon after, Giddey linked up with star Chicago guard Zach LaVine for his eighth assist of the evening on a well-executed back-cut play.
“Josh Giddey’s vision is unbelievable,” King said. “The passes that he makes and sees; that’s a special talent.
“It’s almost on a nightly basis he (Giddey) gets (the ball to) Zach; they have this eye contact when they’re going to make that play. It’s almost on a nightly basis he gets a back-cut.”
Wagner’s game-winning three stuns Lakers | 00:54
Giddey checked back into the game early in the final period and made his fifth shot from 10 attempts after a physical move — something head coach Billy Donovan has asked for more of from him — against Grizzlies power forward Brandon Clarke.
However, after multiple leaky defensive possessions, his stint on the floor didn’t last long; substituted out with eight minutes left as Memphis started to run away with it.
The rest of the Bulls’ starters were pulled with four and a half minutes left as the Grizzlies held a 20-point lead.
ROCKETS STAR FACING MONSTER BAN
Houston’s Fred VanVleet is facing a huge suspension after nearly making intentional contact with a referee while calling him a “b***h” repeatedly.
VanVleet’s Rockets copped a shock home loss to Portland, and he was ejected after believing he was fouled on a late in-bounds play.
He appeared to point at the referees and insult them all, walking up to one and pointing right into his face while clearly calling him a “b***h”.
“I think I’m in enough trouble as it is tonight, so I probably don’t need to discuss too much officiating with you guys,” VanVleet said post-game.
“Heat of the moment, you always feel right — I know the refs aren’t trying to be wrong but we disagreed quite a bit tonight.”