Giddey set for Bulls return

NEW YORK (AFP) — Australian guard Josh Giddey has signed a new contract to remain with the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Chicago Bulls, the team announced on Tuesday.

The Bulls did not disclose the terms of the deal but ESPN reported it was a four-year contract worth $100 million and fully guaranteed.

Giddey, obtained by the Bulls in June 2024 in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder, averaged 14.6 points and NBA career-highs of 8.1 rebounds, 7.2 assists and 1.2 steals in 70 games last season with Chicago.

The only other Bulls player to average at least 14 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in a single season was iconic playmaker Michael Jordan, a six-time NBA champion.

The 22-year-old Aussie played a season with Adelaide in his homeland before being taken sixth overall in the 2021 NBA Draft by the Thunder, where he spent three seasons as a starter before being traded to the Bulls for guard Alex Caruso.

Giddey’s 30 double-doubles last season were the most by any Bull in a campaign since Jordan in 1988-89 and second to Jordan in triple-doubles in a season with seven.

Giddey’s career-high 105 three-pointers helped the Bulls to a club one-season record of 1,271 three-pointers.

Over his first four NBA seasons, Giddey has averaged 14.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 0.9 steals in 280 games.