Josh Giddey Drafted at Pick Six by Oklahoma City

Friday, July 30, 2021

The Hungry Jack's NBL congratulates Josh Giddey for being drafted with the sixth pick in today's NBA Draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Giddey is now the highest Australian ever drafted directly from the NBL to the NBA, surpassing Chris Anstey, who was the 18th pick in the 1997 draft.

The 18-year-old will start his NBA career in Oklahoma City after spending the 2020/21 NBL season with the Adelaide 36ers.

Giddey had a sensational season with the 36ers, winning the NBL's Rookie of the Year award after averaging 10.9 points, 7.5 assists and 7.4 rebounds per game. He also became the first Australian in NBL history to record back-to-back triple doubles as his draft stock rose dramatically during the year.

Giddey becomes the third NBL Next Star to get drafted directly after his NBL season, joining LaMelo Ball (pick three) and RJ Hampton (pick 24) from last year’s draft.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">? <a href="https://twitter.com/joshgiddey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@joshgiddey</a> discusses becoming the No. 6 overall pick to the <a href="https://twitter.com/okcthunder?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@okcthunder</a> in the NBA Draft.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBADraft?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBADraft</a> 2021 presented by State Farm on ABC/ESPN <a href="https://t.co/Y1xcB2LkQB">pic.twitter.com/Y1xcB2LkQB</a></p>— NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1420913017726832644?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Giddey said: "It's a dream come true so to be taken by the Thunder and to have them want me on their team it makes me feel really special and I couldn't be happier.

"The Australian basketball community is really tight. So, to have those guys by my side and supporting me through this whole process has been really good for me.

"Watching LaMelo and R.J. Hampton go through that same process and see how well their game translated from the NBL to the NBA gave me confidence going in that hopefully I can do something a little bit similar.

"Lucky enough I did, I landed in a good spot and having LaMelo and R.J. with the attention they brought from America to Australia was big, and I was just lucky enough that the limelight was still on me at the time.

"They had so much attention on the league and it allowed me to go in there with lots of eyes on it so it was a good time for me to enter the league."

Hungry Jack's NBL Commissioner Jeremy Loeliger said: "The entire NBL family congratulates Josh Giddey on being drafted by the Oklahoma City Thunder with the sixth selection.

"This is the culmination of years of hard work from Josh and it is a day he and his family will never forget. Josh is a fantastic ambassador for Australian basketball and we have no doubt he will do us proud on the NBA stage.

"It is also a landmark day for Australian basketball and the NBL, as we further validate ourselves as a league that provides strong and legitimate pathways to the NBA.

"Josh's drafting showcases the strength of the NBL's Next Stars program. He becomes the fifth Next Star to progress to the NBA, joining Brian Bowen Jr, LaMelo Ball, RJ Hampton and Didi Louzada. Meanwhile, Illawarra Hawks Next Star Justinian Jessup was drafted by the Golden State Warriors last year and will try to make their roster with a strong NBA Summer League.

"We wish Josh the very best of luck in Oklahoma City and can't wait to watch him develop and grow."