It’s long felt a fait accompli that Josh Giddey and the Chicago Bulls would eventually find common ground on a new contract in free agency, but the time it’s taking to do so has left the door open for a rival team – perhaps the Golden State Warriors – to step forward and intervene.
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported earlier in the week that the Warriors would have interest in a Jonathan Kuminga-Giddey swap if they could make it work. This is understandable given Giddey’s high IQ and theoretical fit within Steve Kerr’s system, but less has been made of what is actually in it for the player himself and why he’d agree to the swap.
Warriors can offer Josh Giddey a national connection
After trading Zach LaVine at the mid-season deadline, Giddey was essentially given the keys to the Bulls offense where he took advantage in averaging – points, -- rebounds and --- assists on --- shooting from the floor and --- from 3-point range after the All-Star break.
As helpful as Giddey could be in lessening the burden on Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, he would undoubtedly be taking a step back from a role standpoint. They could alleviate that by giving him a better opportunity to win in the short-term, but how important is that to a 22-year-old?
From a contractual standpoint, the Warriors can’t offer what the Bulls potentially can – even if they’re not offering it currently which has led to the stalemate. The absolute top Golden State could give – while allowing them to sign Al Horford and make their other free agency moves -- is about $23 million per year. That's well below the $30 million that Giddey is said to be seeking, though it does look like he'll have to take some sort of discount.
What the Warriors can offer which the Bulls can't match is an opportunity to be on the same team as two of his fellow Australians. Giddey has already been working out with Taran Armstrong this offseason after the 6'5" point guard represented Golden State at summer league.
Josh Giddey and Taran Armstrong 🤔 pic.twitter.com/jYZHxXOGso
— Chef curry (Parody) (@baby_face_goat) August 8, 2025
Alex Toohey was also drafted 52nd overall by the Warriors at June's draft and played for the franchise in summer league. While both remain technically uncontracted at this point, Armstrong and Toohey are both expected to be on two-way contracts entering next season.
It may not be a huge swing factor, but having that familiarity among international players does add some level of incentive and could be part of Giddey's decision. The former sixth overall pick has shown immense pride in representing Australia early in his career and spends much of the offseason back home, suggesting that the presence of Armstrong and Toohey should be part of any pitch that Golden State makes.
There's a lot of water to go under the bridge before this even becomes a possibility. Firstly Giddey would have to declare his intention in joining the Warriors, then the Bulls would have to be open to sign-and-trade negotiations, and finally a deal would need to be reached in a very complicated scenario.