Australian phenom Josh Giddey starred for the Oklahoma City Thunder during Wednesday’s nine-point victory over the Golden State Warriors, registering the seventh triple-double of his NBA career.
The 20-year-old from Melbourne contributed 17 points, 11 rebounds and 17 assists during the 137-129 victory in front of a packed house at Oklahoma City’s Paycom Centre, with Thunder point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander mustering a team-high 33 points against the defending champions.
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Giddey becomes the youngest player in NBA history to record a line of 15+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 15+ assists. The only NBA player more triple-doubles before their 21st birthday is Luka Doncic.
“Gid’s a great passer, everyone knows that,” Thunder teammate Jaylin Williams told reporters after the game.
“We looked up and saw he had 17 assists and were like, ‘Dang!’”
Giddey’s career-high 17 assists equals the Australian record in the NBA, with Ben Simmons achieving the feat in 2019.
“At this stage of the year, every win is crucial. This is a big one for us against a really good team,” Giddey said after the triumph.
“It was just a matter of who could weather the storm the best, and we did a good job of managing their runs.
“I was just trying to get guys the ball in the right sports at the right time, and they took care of the rest.
“It was a credit to the group, a team effort against a really good opponent.”
The Thunder, coming off back-to-back victories against the Utah Jazz, have now won three games in a row, sliding up to 10th on the Western Conference standings.
They will next face Phoenix Suns, who are also hunting for a fourth consecutive victory. at the Footprint Center on Thursday at 1pm AEDT.