Josh Giddey and Alex Caruso Trade, Malik Monk signs with Kings | Game Theory Podcast w/ Sam Vecenie

[@michaelfredgren3910]

I think the resigning of Monk (along with the extensions for Fox and Sabonis during the last couple of seasons) has cleansed the stain that was the Sacramento Kings Front Office under Vlade Divac. Just feels like there is a vibe and a "style of play" that other basketball players will gravitate towards.

[@TSBrutal]

Something to note on the Presti comments. Since they were looking to move Giddey to the bench that means that they were going to introduce someone new into the starting lineup. It could be Joe or Caruso but I think it is more likely that the Thunder look to make at least one more move

[@t7-nba379]

They can get nic claxton, isiah hartenstein or deni avidja to replace him,I don't think caruso will start because J dub needs to move back to SF AND Dort is a SG

[@britaneejustinmosley1900]

I think it was going to be Wallace. Great defender, hits the 3, athletic.

[@808bboarder]

They still have the 12th pick

[@nanagotham1590]

@@t7-nba379they should get Wendell Carter instead. He’s more switchable, stronger, can stretch the floor and a good rebounder.

[@BOnYTB]

I think the final version of the Thunder, or the near optimal one, doesn’t have Dort on the team. He’d be a great bench player but that’s not realistic money wise in the future, so I’m ruling that out. Caruso prolly won’t start either, though he will close vs certain matchups. He is a great depth piece and won’t be expensive. I like Cason a lot but he still needs time to develop. I think if you’re OKC Caruso was a huge add, and now you need two more pieces. A 6’8+ 3&D F (Dort replacement) and another C. One that can protect the rim, someone you can utilize when you wanna switch it up and go big, or just need a true backup C instead of J-Will. Idk who those two guys will be. But they’re two pieces away as long as JDub continues to develop, Cason gets a little better, and then assuming you can rely on Joe and Wiggins to be rotation players. The backup C piece is not hard to get, those are plentiful. The hardest will be finding that perfect 3&D+ F to replace Dort. It doesn’t need to be a star at all, but it’s just a very valuable archetype. Like a mix between JJJr and Jerami Grant basically. Someone who can provide some rim help ideally, guard 2-4, hit C&S 3s, and be a decent rebounder.

[@douglasmargitza1210]

Caruso will bring grit especially playoffs...giddy neededa change of scenery....but for Chicago fans it will be fun to watch colby n josh play together, imo they'll grow into exceptional backcourt

[@ejschiller7787]

malik monk wants to play with fox they’ve been good friends since kentucky days i didn’t think he was ever gonna leave

[@SeasonsAndSloan]

I just remember the Josh Giddey play in game last year, 31 points 10 assists and 9 rebounds!! So skilled AT 20 YEARS OLD! However, Shai is an MVP candidate so the offense runs through him, which hurts Giddey. He didn’t fit, 6:50 says it best. I love the idea of the Bulls thinking they can actualize this young lead guard. OKC just officially became Finals contenders

[@aaronmick2281]

Good trade for both teams, don’t think bulls got robbed. I think giddy is a little underrated and Caruso a little overrated.

[@Kenny-bj2zq]

OK going to be good now all they need is a big to help Chet with minutes - Giddey will have a good season he does a lot I think if he can get his 3 point numbers up it will go down as a very good trade for Bulls

[@LivinProoof]

I really appreciate your comment on kings fans just happy to have a decent team finally. It was brutal. I still think resigning him was SO important for what comes next for us.

[@yum_yum5566]

I feel like monk not winning sixth man played a factor into him resigning. It just showed the leauge and media did not value him as much as sacramento did, so the only logical option is to resign with sacramento.

[@nowl775]

The first Bulls trade since the 2021 offseason and they couldn't even get a pick from the stockpile that OKC has accumulated.

[@michaelahurt]

You realize Josh Giddey is better than any of those picks though, right? Giddey would be the #1 pick if he were in this draft.

[@LivinProoof]

Monk resigning with the Kings is absolutely CRUCIAL to taking them to the next step. They would have had to spend way WAY more money just to find a player that could replace him. Now they get to keep him for a great price AND can possibly add that final piece to really make them a contender

[@ilovekaiyko]

at the end of the day, the bulls got robbed

[@kevinscott9242]

OKC getting Caruso & keeping their 24' pick. Sac keeping Monk. Great way to start the offseason

[@crazekananas]

Does this mean Dort will be on the move? I don't see why or how Caruso and Dort play together.

[@ilovekaiyko]

no way lmao, caruso can easily play 1-3 and dort 2-4

[@jackiemoon5906]

You don’t see why or how? Go look at their shooting stats and come back.

[@crazekananas]

@@jackiemoon5906 not worried about shooting, more worried about creation. OKC now only has two competent creators on the entire roster.

[@jackiemoon5906]

@@crazekananas creating pg is definitely a need but Caruso averaged 3.5 assists on the sorry bulls where giddey averaged 4.8 and gets talked about as John Stockton. OKC backup pg Wallace is a defensive combo guard. Would you choose a starting 4 to combat the size problem or a new starting pg?

[@michaelahurt]

No. I think they're actually gonna try to play 4 guards at once. Especially in the regular season But 5 guys for 144 minutes at PG, SG, SF is fine. Dort, Cason and Caruso all being able to go full out for 20-25 minutes will be kind of scary to deal with for opposing guards and wings

[@rustytv3023]

The moment Josh makes the leap to 39 percent plus as a three point threat.. is the moment when everyone on all of these pods gets egg on their face. Josh is a PLAYMAKER. Caruso is a ROLE PLAYER. correct me if i'm wrong, but has caruso put up near 30 point triple doubles?

[@matheusnavesborges2720]

Thats a good point! Giddey may be solid pg moving forward, and super young

[@TheOfficialChicoCas]

As a Bulls fan I'm not mad about the trade, would of been nice if there was a pick attached but after years of wanting change, at least there's some change coming and I'm hoping we're bad this upcoming season so then we keep our top 10 protected pick from the Spurs.

[@anthempt3edits]

I can’t believe the Bulls couldn’t even get 1 first round pick or at least a few seconds added in. I like Giddey as a player and fit but it’s still infuriating after knowing what was in the table.

[@TheSportsandFilmFellowship]

Giddey and Coby white is a really nice backcourt to build around. They will tank and trade Lavine Derozan and sit lonzo or trade him. They are banking on Cooper Flagg or Ace Bailey for next years draft. Maybe the big freshman kid also from Duke. Next years class is special so the Bulls need to be smart and rebuild. Coby can score and shoot, Giddey will be great with him

[@meccanised]

Good Call, Washington and Detroit, Portland also, already have a leg up on them though in terms of being absolutely woeful.

[@user-td2lg1fl6h]

Malik does make the kings a contender. Arguably his injury cost the kings the playoffs

[@TimothyAnczer]

So you go from a 21-year-old kid who has out of the world potential to a 30-year-old one play away from season ending injury at any time who has to get extended That's a win

[@bkelly625]

Giddey won’t be extended on some big contract until he proves more. No way the Bulls just hand him 25-30 mil a year or whatever he literally just got benched in playoffs and had a bad season and wasn’t even good the year before and off court distraction plus all the advanced stats say he’s never been good. Flashes isn’t enough to hand a guy a big bag of money and if the Bulls do before he proves anything I’m officially no longer a fan of the team

[@bkelly625]

16 8 and 6 is cool but it was inefficient and with poor advanced stats and he took a step back this year. He is not getting a 5 year 125-150 mil extension after that it would just be ridiculous he needs to show a bit more first I think he even knows it

[@jackiemoon5906]

@@bkelly625also didn’t those numbers come when OKC was tanking hard? When they fooled nba twitter into thinking moses brown was an nba player.

[@bkelly625]

@@jackiemoon5906 Nah it was last year when they made the play in but all the advanced numbers indicated Giddey was a negative on the court. I know players like Cam Johnson and Jordan Poole got big contracts but those were mistakes in hindsight and they had already contributed to winning and had been considered “good” before that. Giddey is just flashes and inefficient counting stats that’s not enough to get a bag like that

[@jackiemoon5906]

@@bkelly625 gotcha thanks. My biggest complaint with Giddey is he has elite passing vision, that literally only ever shows up on in bound passes. I remember debating Poole vs gp2 turns out everyone was wrong on that one lol

[@obryn]

Bulls front office are 🤡😂 Wish Caruso would have gone to the Kings specially with Malik signing.

[@TimothyAnczer]

Malik monk and Kevin Hurder to Chicago for Zach Levine

[@brucecurtis6910]

A mob would storm the Kings office if they okayed this deal. Monk cannot be included in this deal, maybe Barnes instead. Even then I think the Bulls would need to sweeten the pot with a player the Kings like, maybe Patrick Williams. Draft compensation isn’t something the Kings are too interested in.

[@rustytv3023]

OKC fan: I can really reject so many of these "podcasters" for OKC.. These guys are clowns that just talk out of their asses.. Unless you're talking about Rylan Styles .. you can't trust these clown's commentary.

[@GameTheoryPodcastwSamVecenie]

basketball's not all about the stats, man. It's about roster fit with your teammates and finding the necessary skillsets to thrive as a cohesive unit on the court. Nobody would doubt that in a vacuum Giddey is more "talented" than Caruso, but Caruso's skillset is a better match for what OKC needs -- especially given the impending price point. I don't even think we were that hard on Josh, to be honest. Think it was just the right time.

[@rustytv3023]

@@GameTheoryPodcastwSamVecenie Anybody with a brain who isn't thinking emotionally would be able to see that Giddey has a tremendous upside. Caruso is almost 31 and Giddey is almost 22.. That explains itself. Before the JDUB explosion, Giddey was a 17pt, 8 reb, 8 assist player. Those are All star numbers. He did that in his second year. Giddey is a PLAYMAKER at 21. Caruso is a ROLEPLAYER at 30. Unless you think you're smarter than Sam Presti... stfu

[@rustytv3023]

@@GameTheoryPodcastwSamVecenie As for stats, look at Tre Mann. He was a third string player for OKC that is putting up good numbers for Charlotte as a starter.. explain that genius!!!!

[@rustytv3023]

These types of trades are disguised by the Thunder's success and the mediocrity of the Bulls. I'd actually rate it an A for OKC and a B+ for the Bulls (Otherwise go fire your front office and don't be a chump)

[@rustytv3023]

@@GameTheoryPodcastwSamVecenie Okay so I only played Highschool basketball.. but my 11pts 9 rebounds and 2 deflections/ 5-6 stops per game.. i still made the All State team. I made all conference my junior year... but yeah i mean i guess watching tv is more important than playing the game.

[@IodineNC]

Sure Giddey is a terrible shooter who can't get to the line and is only a theoretical defender while likely a massive creep BUT if you view it through the lens of defending draft night positions you can still pretend he will ever be an average starter. On that note when will the next "Cade is ready to take the leap and reach league average TS%" video coming, or will that just come up naturally when the Pistons hire their coach

[@dcwayne4591]

I mean 25 million is Cam Johnson money, Josh is often healthy sounds like a sneaky trade by the Bulls minus the PR hit 🫡

[@bkelly625]

We aren’t just gonna hand that type of bag to Giddey before he plays for us. He has no leverage to get that large of a deal coming off the season he just had I know we gave up Caruso to take a flyer on him but that doesn’t mean we are just going to hand him a near max contract right off the bat I think Sam is off in his evaluation of that

[@RobertJ-lk5bb]

You are going to, I'm happy to bet you

[@bkelly625]

@@RobertJ-lk5bb You think the Bulls will hand Josh Giddey a 5 year 125-150 million dollar contract extension before he plays for them? Yea I’ll take the take bet that won’t happen