Bulls trading Alex Caruso to Thunder for Josh Giddey, sources say - ESPN

The Chicago Bulls are trading two-time All-Defensive guard Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder for guard Josh Giddey, sources told ESPN on Thursday.

The trade delivers the Thunder one of the league's most coveted role players, a 30-year-old guard GM Sam Presti has long pursued for the Western Conference's No. 1 seed. Caruso's arrival could be seen as an addition comparable to the Golden State Warriors acquisition of Andre Iguodala in 2013. At the time of that deal, Iguodala was also 30 years old.

The Bulls have been determined to find a playmaker to replace Lonzo Ball, and Giddey, 21, comes with an All-Star potential that would unlikely be realized with the Thunder because of the playmaking star power who surrounded him. Point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the MVP runner-up and there's an expectation that the franchise wants to give 7-footer Chet Holmgren even more playmaking duties.

Giddey was the sixth overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft and developed into one of the league's most creative young playmakers. The Bulls will offer him an opportunity to have the ball in his hands and more freedom to pass and score. Chicago needed an engine for its offense, and the Bulls land that with Giddey.

Giddey played a career-high 80 games for the Thunder this past season, but eventually started to come off the bench in the Western Conference playoffs. His scoring average dropped from 16.6 points to 12.3 points last season as his role with the Thunder evolved. Giddey has 11 career triple-doubles, fourth most by a player at age 21 or younger all-time, trailing only Luka Doncic, Magic Johnson and Ben Simmons, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.

Caruso shot 41 percent on 3-pointers and ranked fourth in steals in the