{"id":302135,"date":"2025-11-22T20:31:07","date_gmt":"2025-11-22T20:31:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/302135\/"},"modified":"2025-11-22T20:31:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-22T20:31:07","slug":"hes-the-real-thing-longley-feels-chicago-connection-as-josh-giddey-brings-bulls-back-to-the-big-time-nba","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/302135\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018He\u2019s the real thing\u2019: Longley feels Chicago connection as Josh Giddey brings Bulls back to the big time | NBA"},"content":{"rendered":"

Luc Longley chooses his words carefully when talking about Chicago Bulls<\/a> point guard Josh Giddey, not wanting to heap any more expectation on the young Australian still finding his feet in the ferocious competition of the NBA.<\/p>\n

He says he doesn\u2019t watch every Bulls game these days \u2013 only about half of them. That he hasn\u2019t spoken to Giddey much since his move to Illinois. That Longley\u2019s life in Australia, where he part-owns the Sydney Kings and Flames, takes up most of his energies rather than what is happening on the shores of Lake Michigan.<\/p>\n

Despite all this, Longley says he can\u2019t help but feel a connection to Giddey\u2019s emergence with the Bulls<\/a>, one of the stories of the NBA season. \u201cIt\u2019s a little bit of a weird deja vu thing, I guess, seeing him in those uniforms, in that arena, doing what he does,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Longley won three NBA titles with the Bulls in the 1990s alongside Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen in one of the world\u2019s most famous sporting outfits. His improbable story may have been overlooked by the producers of Netflix documentary The Last Dance, but it was well told by the ABC in 2021<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Giddey\u2019s trade to Chicago last season, and his emergence as a leader on an improving Bulls side this campaign, has revived old memories. \u201cIt\u2019s a little bit surreal for me,\u201d Longley says. \u201cEspecially with my connection to his old man.\u201d<\/p>\n

The red and black singlet is not the only thing Giddey and Longley have in common. The towering centre has known the young point guard for years, thanks to a period in the late 1980s in junior representative basketball when he played alongside Warwick Giddey, a man Longley calls \u201cWazza\u201d.<\/p>\n

Luc Longley plays for the Chicago Bulls against the Indiana Pacers during the 1995-96 NBA championship-winning season. Photograph: Frank McGrath\/NBAE\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Giddey senior was the first person to play Australian Schoolboys in both rugby league and union in the same year. He also made the basketball side. \u201cI remember when I was a young bloke on those national teams, and he was just one of those guys that you wanted to play alongside,\u201d Longley says.<\/p>\n

The physical former Melbourne Tigers forward ended up an NBL legend, playing 449 games and winning two championships. Longley sees a lot of the old man in Josh, attributes that he believes will resonate with the \u201cblue collar\u201d Chicago he remembers. \u201cHe\u2019s tough as nails, he\u2019s not really a chest pounder, but he lets his actions do the talking.\u201d<\/p>\n

It has been 27 years since Longley left Chicago, the same duration the proud basketball city has been waiting to add to its tally of six NBA<\/a> titles. \u201cThe lean years have stung the Bulls, stung the fans, because going from the penthouse to the outhouse is worse than the other way around,\u201d the Australian says.<\/p>\n

But Longley admits he doesn\u2019t know for sure, doesn\u2019t have a sense of what it\u2019s like for Giddey, now trying to win games and win over an impatient fanbase.<\/p>\n

Josh Giddey is averaging close to a 20-point triple double as the Australian helps Chicago Bulls to an 8-7 NBA record. Photograph: Rob Gray\/AP<\/p>\n

\u201cThe truth is, I haven\u2019t played for Chicago when we\u2019re not winning, so I can\u2019t actually tell you first hand what it\u2019s like to be in a non-winning Bulls environment,\u201d he says. \u201cI suspect though that, Chicagoans being Chicagoans, they\u2019re pretty intolerant of losing, and I think they\u2019d be even more intolerant of losing in an apathetic or non-competitive way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Longley believes it\u2019s no coincidence that the Bulls are now more competitive, and that rediscovered edge is partly down to the influence of Giddey. \u201cObviously we don\u2019t want to compare him with Michael, but appetite for competition \u2013 were it to be statted [measured statistically] \u2013 I think Josh is elite.\u201d<\/p>\n

The legend of Michael Jordan hangs over the world of basketball, not just Chicago. Just ask LeBron James, whose greatness has always been relative. At the Bulls, there has been no recipe for success in the 60 years of the franchise without the No 23.<\/p>\n

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Longley says Giddey and Jordan are so different, in background and playing style, that any comparison is a waste of time. Ultimately, the Australian is still working on his craft, and finding ways to be successful.<\/p>\n

Luc Longley attends the WNBL Hoopsfest as part-owner of Sydney Flames. Photograph: James Worsfold\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality is his offensive game has to be strong, he has to shoot the ball and be attacking,\u201d Longley says. \u201cOr in order for him to be a facilitator, that\u2019s where Josh\u2019s game has really evolved, is he\u2019s hitting that three and he\u2019s attacking the rim so hard that he\u2019s collapsing the defence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Giddey\u2019s form this season has been strong overall. He averages close to a 20-point triple double and has helped the historic franchise to an 8-7 record, putting them in playoff contention. But there are still question marks, as highlighted by a 36-point defeat to Miami Heat in the NBA Cup as Giddey played a lone hand with 19 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists on Saturday (AEDT).<\/p>\n

The Bulls roared out of the gate this season, then suffered a five-game losing streak, and a viral defensive fail on the perimeter against De\u2019Andre Hunter became an ankle twist that forced Giddey to miss time. On Thursday, the team gave up a 21-point lead against the Blazers and Giddey was on the floor for much of it, on a night his shooting was below par.<\/p>\n

Coach Billy Donovan appears to have confidence in the Australian, however, relying on him to inbound the ball for the Bulls\u2019 game-winning possession in the same game. Centre Nikola Vu\u010devi\u0107 scored the winning basket, just as he did two weeks ago when Giddey set up the Montenegrin. It was another grandstand finish in what is quickly becoming a memorable Chicago season.<\/p>\n

Longley, too, has confidence in Giddey. \u201cI believe in his talent. I believe in his intensity and I think his basketball intentions are pure,\u201d Longley says. \u201cI really think he\u2019s the real thing, and I can\u2019t wait to sit in the stands and watch him do it. That would really join the dots for me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Luc Longley chooses his words carefully when talking about Chicago Bulls point guard Josh Giddey, not wanting to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":302136,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[557],"tags":[64,63,590,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-302135","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nba","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-nba","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302135","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=302135"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302135\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/302136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=302135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=302135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=302135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}