Tramel's ScissorTales: OKC Thunder guard Josh Giddey has plenty of magic to his game
Edmond’s own Josh Richardson hit Josh Giddey in the family jewels midway through the fourth quarter, and those of us with no physical investment thought it was downright cool Wednesday night.
Flagrant foul on Richardson. Two foul shots for Giddey. Ultra-valuable point or two.
But Giddey wasn’t thinking scoreboard. The amiable Australian was angry. He was pointing and he was talking and he was coming after his new worst enemy.
Teammate Jaylin Williams intercepted Giddey as he went charging in Richardson’s direction, the defensive play of the night, since losing Giddey over some nonsense was the last thing the Thunder needed.
And excellent reaction on Giddey’s part.
The guy looks genial and acts gracious. That curly hair and pleasant personality and Aussie accent can make you forget the truth that Giddey is one tough bloke.
The Thunder beat the New Orleans Pelicans 123-118 in an NBA play-in tournament game, and now the Thunder plays at Minnesota on Friday night for a berth in the Western Conference playoff bracket.
More: Thunder vs. Pelicans report card: Lu Dort, Josh Giddey are spectacular in NBA play-in win
And Giddey was spectacular: 31 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists, 11-of-22 shooting, just two turnovers.
Call Giddey’s play a coming-out party to NBA Nation. Call Giddey’s personality a coming-out party to Oklahoma.
At the ripe age of 20, Giddey is more than just a basketball matrix, more than just a 6-foot-8 point guard who can more than meet all the skill demands of the position. Giddey also is an iron-willed competitor who has been competing against older ballplayers for years and seems more than capable of standing up to the playoff heat.
“Felt good,” Giddey said of playing with force. “Felt like a playoff game. Felt like what I thought it would feel like. It was what I expected.
“Not just the physicality of the game, but the crowd, the environment. It was a hostile place to play. They’re the type of games when you grow up, you want to be involved in. For me, this is as good as I could imagine my first playing experience being.”
In between, Giddey scored 27 of the Thunder’s 96 points. He made three of seven 3-point shots, even though he was a 32.5-percent deep-ball shooter this season, and six of his seven foul shots, even though he was a 73-percent foul shooter this season.
“He was great tonight,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “Unbelievable force. Great toughness, both ends, glass, everything.”
More: Thunder-Pelicans NBA play-in game reminds us of the ties forever binding OKC, New Orleans
Not to get anyone worked up, but Giddey looked an awful lot like another 20-year-old point guard who stuffed the box score and the hearts of teammates.
Magic Johnson.
Not saying Giddey is driving down Magic Boulevard, but check out their season numbers as 20-year-olds.
Magic 1979-80: 17.9 points, 7.7 rebounds 7.3 assists, .530 shooting, 3.9 turnovers.
Giddey 2022-23: 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.2 assists, .482 shooting, 2.8 turnovers.
Those Pat Riley Lakers handed the reins to Magic 43 seasons ago, and he led Los Angeles to the NBA title.
Daigneault is not handing the reins to Giddey, primarily because Gilgeous-Alexander needs the ball, too. But Daigneault put the play-in game in Giddey’s hands.
With 10.4 seconds left and the Thunder up two, Giddey inbounded the ball at halfcourt. Seemed for sure that Giddey had one job – get the ball inbounded to someone who could make foul shots.
Instead, the Thunder ran an inbounds play that sent Gilgeous-Alexander streaking to the basket. Giddey hit SGA in stride with a bullet pass. And Gilgeous-Alexander wasn’t that open; his dunk attempt was blocked from behind by Richardson, and Dort’s hustle saved the day when he grabbed the loose ball.
But think about it. With the season on the line, Daigneault was fine with Giddey going all Brett Favre and firing a ball into traffic.
Giddey’s decision-making was a key to the victory all night. Daigneault adjusted to New Orleans’ flooding defense – trapping SGA in pick-and-roll plays – by having Giddey serve as the screener, then flaring toward the foul line.
Gilgeous-Alexander would hit Giddey with a pass, and the Thunder had about two seconds to play 4-on-3. That’s enough time for Giddey to distribute the ball where it needs to be.
What a game. And what a player. A 20-year-old budding star who served notice that not only can he shine at the highest level, but he won’t back down when the fire gets hot.
More: Carlson: NBA play-in tournament should boost this young OKC Thunder team for years to come
OU football's Kendel Dolby bucks juco trend
Junior-college recruiting once was a college football staple.
That’s no longer the case. High school players are better prepared academically these days, and the transfer portal means a player can sign with a lower-level program with easy access to a Power Five Conference if he proves himself.
Some giants of OU history came from the junior-college ranks. Josh Heupel. Steve Zabel. Billy Brooks. Phil Loadholt. Torrance Marshall.
But a few quality players still end up in junior colleges, and some still sign with major programs. Like OU cornerback Kendel Dolby.
Dolby, from Springfield, Ohio, went to Northeastern A&M Junior College after he failed to qualify academically out of high school. And the Sooners came calling last year. Dolby signed a letter of intent and is going through spring practice.
Here’s a portion of his interview session with reporters this week.
More: How OU football's Jonah Laulu became the 'best version' of himself with move to DT
Q: What are the biggest challenges in the jump from junior college?
Dolby: “I would say the details, really. Everything at this level is details. You’re tired? You just gotta be detailed with everything. That’s the biggest thing for me, the biggest thing I’ve realized is details. Being disciplined in your technique. That’s probably the biggest change for me.”
Q: Any advantage to going the juco route? Dolby: “I would say kind of getting college under your belt. Obviously not the Division I level, but still being in college. When you come to this level, it’s going to be more knowledge that you have to learn. But as far as like the physicality, it hasn’t been much of a big difference from being in juco to now. There’s still dudes who are strong, big. So I guess in a way, that kind of helped me a little bit, if that makes sense.”
Q: Are you hungrier coming from juco?
Dolby: “Makes me hungrier for sure. I feel like I’ve got a chip on my shoulder. Being a juco dude, going into my junior year, I feel like I got a lot to prove and I’ve got to do it fast and make a name. That’s kind of my goal. So definitely got a chip on my shoulder and it makes me hungry.”
Q: How was dorm life at NEO?
“Yeah, I was in the dorms. So we had like a football dorm, where all the football players lived in the dorm. It was called Dyer. We called it D Block.”
Q: Plush?
Dolby: “It’s not at all. I’m glad I’m here now, for sure.”
Q: How are Jerry Schmidt workouts treating you?
Dolby: “At first, it got me a little bit. But it’s one of those things, you just keep working, you keep pushing, you start getting used to it now. It’s nothing now.”
Q: Should you have said that?
Dolby: “Haha. Hey, Schmidtty, take it easy. I mean, if he does, he does. I’ll just have to rise to it. They say summer’s pretty hard. So I’m looking forward to that.”
More: Tramel's ScissorTales: Why OSU's Mike Gundy sees similarities in Bryan Nardo, Gary Gibbs
Mailbag: NIL confusion
We live in a name, image and likeness world. But that doesn’t mean everyone understands it. Doesn’t mean anyone understands it.
Lynn: “I am not familiar with how NIL works other than college athletes getting money for, well, for being college athletes. A few years back some OU players got into trouble for ‘working’ for a car dealership. What is there to stop something like that happening again? What if the owner of the lot decided to pay a college football star for doing an endorsement for a dealership? The athlete would not really have to do any work at all. Kurt Vonnegut wrote a novel, Player Piano, that predicted this.”
Tramel: If the car dealer decides to pay for an endorsement, that’s NIL at work. It’s no longer against the rules. That’s exactly how NIL is supposed to work.
I read Player Piano in high school. That was 45 years ago. I don’t remember much. I know it’s dystopian. I don’t believe NIL is dystopian.
If college athletes get money to promote a website or a car dealership, what do I care? If college athletes get money without promoting a website or a car dealership, how is that different from five years ago, when this was all under the table?
If a car dealer wants to pay the next Rhett Bomar not to work, may the good Lord take a liking to him. It’s bad business, but who cares?
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Big 12 List: Diamond standings
OU sits atop Big 12 softball. The Sooners are in last place in Big 12 baseball. It got me to thinking. Who has the Big 12’s best combined diamond programs?
The sports are not mirror images. Big 12 baseball has great parity. Only three games separate first-place Texas (6-3) and last-place OU (3-6). Big 12 softball has little parity. Eight games separate first-place OU (9-0) and last-place Iowa State (1-8).
Only six schools compete in both softball and baseball. Here are their combined standings:
1. OSU 13-5: Oklahoma State is 6-0 in softball and 7-5 in baseball, in second place in each standings.
2. OU 12-6: The Sooners were a robust 36-10 combined last season.
2. Texas 12-6: The Longhorns are consistent; 6-3 in each sport.
4. Kansas 6-9: The Jayhawks are 1-5 in softball but a surprisingly-competitive 5-4 in baseball.
5. Baylor 6-12: The Bears are 2-4 in softball, 4-8 in baseball.
5. Texas Tech 6-12: The Red Raiders are 2-7 in softball, 4-5 in baseball.
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Cleveland Browns stadium name changes
The Cleveland Browns have ended their stadium naming-rights agreement with FirstEnergy Corporation. FirstEnergy Stadium will become Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Funny. I’d have thought it would be the other way around.
FirstEnergy bought the naming rights in 2013 but was involved in political scandal a couple of years ago. FirstEnergy officials admitted the company’s role in bribing the former speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives over a nuclear bill. The Cleveland City Council passed a resolution last summer asking the company to relinquish the naming rights.
But why did anyone want the naming rights of a stadium that houses a team quarterbacked by Deshaun Watson, who repeatedly has been accused of serial sexual harassment and assault.
The accusations came when Watson played for the Houston Texans. The Browns traded for Watson and gave him a guaranteed, five-year, $230-million contract. I wouldn’t want my name associated with Watson.
What a mess. It can happen in naming-rights issues. Remember Enron Field in Houston?
Oh well, we’re somewhat fortunate in Oklahoma City. Most of our venue names have avoided controversy.
Southwestern Bell and the Chickasaw Nation have adorned Bricktown Ballpark. Nothing wrong there.
Cox was no kind of stain on the Myriad’s name.
The Thunder’s arena has been billed for Ford, Chesapeake Energy and Paycom. The only hint of scandal came in 2016, when Chesapeake founder Aubrey McClendon was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of conspiring to rig bids for oil and gas leases. McClendon died the next day in a single-car crash.
Naming rights bring cash. Sometimes they bring trouble. Just ask Cleveland.
Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Josh Giddey leads OKC Thunder past Pelicans in NBA play-in tournament
