What Thunder's Josh Giddey, Jalen Williams thought about NBA Rising Stars Challenge

SALT LAKE CITY — Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams sat beside each other at NBA Rising Stars media day Friday morning, played together Friday night in the Rising Stars tournament and finished their marathon day by doing postgame interviews at neighboring tables.

The Thunder teammates couldn’t shake each other on All-Star Friday in Salt Lake City, and that was fine by them.

“I’m really happy I got to share that moment with Josh and be able to play with him out there,” Williams said.

Added Giddey: “To have a teammate here with you always makes these things 10 times better. And to have (Jalen), who’s had such a great rookie year, be in this event with me was a lot of fun. And to be on the same team, it was that little bit better.”

Giddey and Williams were teammates on Team Joakim, one of four squads competing in the Rising Stars tournament. Three teams consisted of rookie and sophomore NBA players. The fourth team was filled with G Leaguers.

Team Joakim lost in the finals to Team Pau, led by MVP Jose Alvarado of the Pelicans.

“It’s always a fun time being at All-Star weekend, and when guys are playing hard like they did tonight, it makes those events better for the audience to watch,” Giddey said.

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Team Joakim, led by Josh Giddey, beats Team Jason in semifinals

Giddey played nine minutes in Team Joakim’s semifinal win over Team Jason and the G Leaguers. Giddey was a plus-20 in his team’s 40-32 win.

Giddey didn’t look to score. He made his only shot, a 3-pointer, to finish with six assists, three points and three rebounds.

No one else, on either team, had more than two assists.

Jalen Williams came off the bench for his seven-man squad. J-Dub is a full-time starter for the Thunder, but apparently nothing is given on Team Joakim.

More:Thunder heads into NBA All-Star break by routing Rockets for second time in February

Team Joakim vs. Team Pau in the finals

Giddey and Williams both got the start in the championship game alongside Knicks guard Quentin Grimes, Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. and Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan.

The final was played to a target score of 25. The semifinals were played to 40. The games had a shot clock but no game clock.

Grimes scored 14 of Team Joakim’s 20 points in the finals loss.

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Rising Stars dish on Josh Giddey, Jalen Williams

It was a good time to ask the peers of Giddey and Williams what they think of the two Thunder guards.

Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III on Giddey: “The first thing I can think of is passing. He gets his guys the ball.”

Murphy on Williams: “He came into our gym during the summer for pre-draft workouts and he just stood out. At the time he was around late first-round draft projection, but I knew after that workout, I was like, ‘He’s not going late first-round.’ He’s a pretty talented guy. Long arms, athletic and plays good defense, too. He has a very bright future as well.”

Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, who played against Williams in college: “He’s versatile on both sides of the floor. He can play the one, two, three. He’s a player that can fit in with a lot of different players … I think he’s just scratching the surface.”

Knicks guard Quentin Grimes on Giddey: “He’s a really good player. He can pass the ball, he can score, rebound, (he’s) almost a walking triple-double every night.”

Hawks forward AJ Griffin on Williams: “I’ve seen a lot of poise early on. When we played them, he showed a lot of aggressiveness in his game — always driving and making strong plays.”

Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado on Giddey: “Smart, man. He’s ahead of his time. This is his second year, right? He’s playing like a vet.”

Alvarado on Williams: “He’s gonna be good. He’s really good. He’s learning, he’s getting comfortable, he’s finding himself.”

More:How to watch Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder at NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City

Thunder tip-ins

• Williams wore one pink shoe and one white shoe. He said he wore the pink shoe to match Thunder PR extraordinaire Laila Wani, who wore a pink dress.

• Josh Giddey was mic’d up during the game. “That was awesome,” he said. “That’s something I’ve never done before, talking in the middle of the game, but that was fun … I’d love to do it in a regular season game. I know it’s probably never gonna happen.”

• Giddey wore a blue fur coat into the arena. “I wanted to have something bold,” he said. “It’s All-Star Weekend, so it’s time to dress up. I saw it on Justin Bieber. It came up on my Instagram randomly. I sent it to one of my guys and we got it custom made just in time for tonight. It’s definitely the boldest thing I’ve ever worn.”

• “It was good,” Williams said of Giddey’s outfit. “I don’t think it was better than mine, but it was good. He’s done a lot with the coats this year.”

• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, dressed in all black leather with black sunglasses, sat courtside with his girlfriend. SGA will make his All-Star debut Sunday.

• Williams was affected by the altitude: “I was extremely tired the first steps up the floor,” he said. “The altitude was definitely new.” The Thunder will be back in Salt Lake City on Thursday to play the Jazz.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Thunder guards Josh Giddey, Jalen Williams play in NBA Rising Stars