Exclusive: Josh Giddey talks ankle injury, Caleb Wilson, LeBron, new Puma shoe and more

It’s clear that Josh Giddey is the face of the Chicago Bulls franchise. The do-it-all playmaker is coming off of a career-best season in which he averaged 17.0 points, 9.1 assists and 8.3 rebounds per game. The 23-year-old guard turned in that season after signing a four-year, $100 million contract with the Bulls. OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA – MARCH 27: Josh Giddey #3 of the Chicago Bulls drives to the basket around Jalen Williams #8 of the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first half at Paycom Center on March 27, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by William Purnell/Getty Images) As he prepares for his third season in Chicago and his sixth in the NBA, Giddey took the time to talk with Casino.org about a range of topics, including offseason surgery, rookie Caleb Wilson, first-year Bulls head coach Tiago Splitter, if he wants to average a triple-double over the course of a season, LeBron James and his new sneaker release. Post-surgery status report Giddey: “Yeah, I feel good. My first surgery, and it’s obviously a challenging time whenever you’re injured. But to go through a surgery, then have to rehab can be tough. I was lucky enough I had great people around me who made the rehab process easy. Surgery went well, so good time to do it. You’d rather do it in the offseason than during the season. But yeah, I’m back to playing, back healthy. I feel good. My ankle feels strong, and I’ve done a ton of work on it. I’m feeling good.” Restrictions to start out of camp? Giddey: “No, I’m back playing five-on-five. I played my first five-on-five stuff (last) week. I feel good, no restrictions, and I’ll be good to go when camp comes around.” On the first surgery of his NBA career and rallying support from fellow players Giddey: “I went through it (myself). Obviously those guys had major surgeries where they’re out 12 months, but mine was nothing compared to that. So no, I didn’t reach out to anyone. There’s been guys in Australia that had gone through the same surgery that I had, so they were guys I spoke to. But yeah, as I said, it wasn’t a huge surgery, so I kind of just went through it, got into the rehab, and I’m on the back-end of it now.” Giddey’s thoughts on the Caleb Wilson addition Giddey: “Yeah, I have. We were together in Miami last week, actually, so we got a chance to play together and get up and down, start working on things we need to as a team with different guys and integrating them into the system. “There’s been a lot of change, but he’s obviously going to be a really important piece to what we’re doing here. Very high draft pick, so there’s going to be a lot of pressure and noise around him. But he’s a good kid. He’s going to fit in with this group, and I’m excited to see how he helps us this year and moving forward.” Wilson’s secret sauce and what makes him a great player Giddey: “I think the thing about him is he doesn’t have one part of his game. He can kind of do everything, and he obviously showed the way he can shoot the ball at summer league, and he can get downhill. He’s athletic, so there’s no real holes in his game, so to speak. He’s obviously young, and he’ll polish a lot of his game up as he gets older and matures. “But I think being able to guard multiple positions, he can rebound, he can run the floor. He doesn’t have a lot of weaknesses in his game, and as I said, he’s a young guy in the league. There’ll be learning curves for him, but he comes in with a pretty well-rounded game and someone that can impact the floor at a high level on both ends.” Thoughts on averaging a triple-double during an entire season Giddey: “Yeah, it has. I think that stuff, you accumulate the stats naturally, and I’ve never been one to kind of go out there and hunt for them. I think they just come as a byproduct of the way I play. And as a bigger guy, I’ve always loved rebounding the ball, and that kind of stems into the pass. When I get it in transition, I can kick the ball ahead and get guys easy looks. It all ties together. “To answer your question, yeah, it’d be great to average that. But I think the stats and those things just accumulate naturally with the way that I play.” Giddey shared thoughts on his new signature sneaker line Giddey: “I was very fortunate to get a signature line with PUMA, and done one already, which was centered around a flower that was Australian, and then the second one, the idea of the first two shoes was kind of tied in back to Australia and back home for me. “With the second one, we chose the Great Barrier Reef as one of the natural wonders of the world, and that’s why the name of the shoe is Wonder. Obviously, we use the blue and the purple from the corals. There are different parts of the shoe that resemble home. “And on the outer soles, the bubbles kind of represent being underwater. Hence the Great Barrier Reef. There’s a lot of little subtle details in the shoe that tie back to Australia. But yeah, the overarching theme of the shoe was the Great Barrier Reef, and I’m really excited with how it turned out.” Giddey’s early impressions of Coach Tiago Splitter Giddey: “Yeah, he’s been great. He’s been really good, and I think as a guy that’s a former player in the NBA, he understands it, and he obviously did a great job with Portland last year. I’m super excited. I’ve had a lot of conversations with him. Obviously, he was in Portland last year, so I didn’t know him a lot, but since he’s been in Chicago, I’ve gotten to know him and spend time with him and talk with him. “Everything he’s about kind of aligns with how we want to play and go about things. He’s been great, and the conversations I’ve had with him have been great. I’m super excited to play for him and ramp things up as we get closer to the season.” Splitter’s notable character traits Giddey: “I think as a former player at the highest level, he understands us and he’s able to relate on that more personal level than maybe a guy that hasn’t played in the NBA or hasn’t done the things that he’s done. “He can see the game from a player’s perspective as someone who’s played it for a long time. So it’s probably the best thing about him. And a very high IQ guy. You can tell just talking basketball with him. He knows the game really well. I’m excited to play for him.” Initial reaction to LeBron going to the Sixers Giddey: “Yeah, honestly, I didn’t pick Philly for the team that he would go to. I didn’t think a lot about it, but yeah, obviously it was his choice to make, and I think any team would have been happy to have him. “He’s one of the best players to ever play, so he adds a lot to any team. And yeah, I think Philly’s obviously — especially getting him and Jaylen Brown — going to be a very good team. But no, to answer your question, I didn’t think that’s where he was going to end up. But kudos to him. He picked it, and they’re going to be a pretty good team.” On going up against LeBron in the Eastern Conference Giddey: “Oh yeah, can’t wait. The Eastern Conference is loaded with talent. Obviously, Giannis going to Miami and him going to Philly. Yeah, those teams only get stronger, and I think a lot of teams in the East are starting to load up. It’s going to be a good conference. It’s going to be fun to play against these tough teams, and that makes you better as a player and as a team.” The post Exclusive: Josh Giddey talks ankle injury, Caleb Wilson, LeBron, new Puma shoe and more appeared first on Casino.org.