Ben Simmons has seen his role drastically decreased in Brooklyn after struggling following the recent departures of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, while Matise Thybulle has an expanded role on a completely new team after being traded from the 76ers.
Meanwhile Josh Green and Jock Landale look set to step up for the Mavericks and Suns respectively in the wake of Irving’s arrival in Dallas and KD’s arrival in Phoenix.
Moves made ahead of the NBA trade deadline have had a massive ripple effect throughout the league and it’s certainly changed things for our Aussie expats with several more stars from Down Under having big roles to play for playoff teams, and others facing key challenges.
With the NBA world taking a deep breath over the All-Star break and things set to really start to heating up when play resumes as the postseason just around the corner, foxsports.com.au has taken a look at how all the Australians in the NBA have been tracking in recent weeks.
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BEN SIMMONS (Brooklyn Nets)
Simmons is back playing basketball after missing all of last season.
That’s about where the positives have ended for the former All-Star point guard this season.
Coming off the bench in the Nets’ last four games since the departure of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, his minutes are noticeably decreasing. Simmons is averaging a career-low in nearly every category with 6.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 6.1 assists a game.
Both he and his coach aren’t sure what his role with the team will look like moving forward now that he hasn’t got shooters the calibre of KD and Kyrie to help space the floor around him as he continues with his offensive struggles.
Things only got worse for Simmons after last week’s matchup against the Knicks, a team the Nets had not lost to in three years, with Simmons displaying the same unwillingness to score that fans have been so accustomed to seeing from him since his meltdown in the Atlanta playoff series two years ago that marked the end of his time in Philly.
Following the game, the 26-year-old was brutalised by the US media with the worst comments coming from ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins and Zach Lowe who labelled Ben as a “scared” and “broken player” that has become “sad to watch” during an appearance on ‘NBA Today’.
Simmons branded ‘a broken player’ | 03:29
To his credit he bounced back to show a glimpse of his old self in last Thursday’s game against the Miami Heat with a brilliant three-quarter pass to Bridges at the end of the third quarter for the quick score. Simmons finished with four rebounds, four assists, and two points in his 20 minutes off the bench, despite being booed by his own fans when entering the game.
Hopefully the former No. 1 overall draft pick can regain his confidence across the rest of the season because otherwise he could be on his way out the door in Brooklyn, according to a recent report by Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer.
“What becomes of Simmons and the final two years and nearly $80 million remaining on his contract after this season is of course another dynamic to monitor in Brooklyn,” Fischer wrote.
“The Nets are widely expected to gauge what trade market could materialise for Simmons after his disappointing campaign comes to a close. The three-time All-Star is still far from the form he exhibited during his best days in Philadelphia.”
MATISE THYBULLE (Portland Trail Blazers)
It’s been an up and down few weeks for Thybulle which is the perfect representation of his entire season to date.
In the final week of January, the 25-year-old guard had two of his best offensive performances of the season for the Philadelphia 76ers, scoring 10 points on 60 per cent shooting in games against the Nets and Magic.
Then he only managed to score only nine points while taking just eight shots total across his next four games combined to cap off a frustrating start to the month of February which reflects his season as a whole, having struggled to crack consistent rotation minutes for Doc Rivers’ deep side.
The defensive stud hadn’t gotten a proper look in for the 76ers, averaging a meagre 11.76 minutes across the first five months of the season, without any meaningful role for a Philly team with title aspirations.
After Thybulle didn’t reach a contract extension with the Sixers in the final season of his rookie-scale deal, the writing was on the wall that a split between the two parties was seemingly inevitable.
Then came the news that the former first-round draft pick had been traded to the Portland Trail Blazers as part of a three-team deal involving the Hornets – the only Aussie to change teams prior to the trade deadline.
On the surface, Thybulle has gone from a pereniall playoff team – who are serious contenders to not only come out of the East but win the championship this season – to a borderline playoff squad facing an uphill battle just to secure a play-in spot in the West.
However, from an individual perspective the move to Portland is a fantastic one for the Australian’s career as he will be given a much more substantial role than what he had with the 76ers.
The two-time NBA All-Defensive Second Team player is a solid all-round defender and remarkable on the perimeter, boasting a +4.9 defensive RAPTOR this season according to FiveThirtyEight. This means he improves his team’s defensive performance by 4.8 points per 100 possessions while he is on the floor. Only one player that has played more than 330 minutes this season has a higher defensive rating.
Thybulle is sure to provide the Blazers with a much-needed boost on the defensive end considering they rank 27th in defensive rating (116.5) and opponents 3-point percentage (37), 23rd in opponents effective field goal percentage (55.3) and give up 115 points per game – 18th-worst in the NBA.
Where the former Huskies product’s inability to stretch the floor on the offensive end was a big factor in his minor role in Philly – due to opposition defences being able to crowd the paint around superstar Joel Embiid – it should be less of an issue in Portland thanks to their primary scorer being superstar point guard Damian Lillard – who is a terrific perimeter shooter with endless range.
The results so far have been mixed, with Thybulle scoring a season-high 14 points – including shooting 55.6 per cent from the field and nailing 4/6 from beyond the arc – in a win over the Lakers in his Trail Blazers debut before following it up with a quieter performance – two points on 25 per cent shooting including 0/3 from deep – in a loss to the Wizards.
However, in a hugely positive sign the shooting guard has averaged a season-high 28 minutes per game across his first two games with his new team prior to the league’s All-Star break.
With Thybulle seemingly set for a substantial role in Portland’s rotation and likely more consistent minutes moving forward, he can hopefully translate that into more consistent performances on the offensive end.
After returning from the All-Star break, the impending free agent has plenty of time to prove his worth, particularly if he can assist the team in their push for the playoffs, in the hope of securing a nice new contract at the end of the season.
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JOSH GREEN (Dallas Mavericks)
Australian Josh Green averaged just 7.6 minutes per game in the playoffs last season at Dallas. That is definitely going change this post-season.
Green was one of the big winners to emerge from the trade deadline and now factors as a crucial role player for the Mavericks’ playoff push after they went all-in on a title this season in trading for Irving. Although the guard out of Sydney was worried at first he was the one that had been moved on.
“I don’t have Twitter, so I had no idea [about the trade],” Green told reporters early last week.
“I was in the shower and I came out to like 20 text messages, and I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m done. Like, I’m traded’.”
However fortunately Green wasn’t moved on as the team reportedly viewed him as an integral piece in their quest for a championship and even knocked back Brooklyn’s attempts to include him in the deal, according to The Athletic’s Tim Cato.
Green will only take on even more responsibility on the defensive end with Dorian Finney-Smith, the team’s best perimeter defender, off to Brooklyn.
The 22-year-old has also taken a big leap as a scorer this season, averaging 9.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting a 41.1 per cent from beyond the arc – all career-best marks.
More recently Green has averaged 14.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists on 51.4 per cent shooting across his last 10 games, including a career-high 29 points, six rebounds and +39 in a recent win over the Jazz, elevating his game after stepping into a much larger to repay the Mavericks faith in him as a core piece.
If the 6-foot-5 guard can continue on his current trajectory for the rest of the season then he along with Luka and Kyrie could have a huge say in determining how far Dallas can go in the playoffs this season.
“Josh has shown that he can play with Kai and LD,” Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said recently.
“… What Josh has shown just from just last year, the growth of being able to play make, he’s not afraid of the moment – understanding that the playoffs are a little bit different than the regular season – but you can see he worked on his game (over the off-season).
“His teammates trust him.”
JOCK LANDALE (Phoenix Suns)
Like Green, Landale should be the beneficiary of his team sacrificing depth to acquire a Brooklyn superstar in order to push for a championship.
Phoenix traded out Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and Jae Crowder to land two-time NBA champion Kevin Durant as new Phoenix owner Matt Ishbia took a big swing to try winning the Suns first ever title.
In doing so they gave up valuable depth on the roster, meaning the players they already have in their rotation will likely see their roles increased moving forward.
Reserve big man Jock Landale should be one of those players.
The 27-year-old has continued his solid play off the bench this season, averaging 6.6 points, 4 rebounds and nearly an assist per game in 14.1 minutes prior to the All-Star break.
As the backup centre to former No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton, Landale is set to play a crucial role for the likely playoff-bound Suns and is only one Ayton injury away from becoming the team’s starter.
The 6-foot-11 Melburnian is excited at the prospect of playing with new teammate KD.
“Guys are running around like ‘Man, I’m playing with Kevin Durant now! I gotta step this thing up!’ So everything’s gone up a level, and that’s what needed to happen for us to win this thing this year,” Landale said recently on the ‘Phnx Suns Podcast’.
JOSH GIDDEY (OKC Thunder)
Giddey’s recent streak of 16 games with at least 15 points came to an end after he only scored 13 points in last Thursday’s blowout win over the Rockets.
The 20-year-old averaged an impressive 18.8 points across that stretch to go along with 7.9 rebounds and 6.9 assists while shooting 52.2 per cent from the field and 80 per cent from the line.
However his three-point shot has dropped off, making just 22.7 per cent from beyond the arc in that time.
Giddey is finding ways to impact games during his sophomore season as he has emerged as a genuine playmaker and the clear second-best player behind All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on a young thunder side which currently sits 10th in the West but only trails the No. 3 seed Kings by four games.
The 6-foot-8 ball-handler ranks 25th in the league for assists per game (5.9) and 35th for rebounds (7.8) and leads the Thunder in both of those categories, but perhaps his greatest skill is his inbounds passing.
Giddey drew heavy praise recently from Fox Sport US’ journalist Yaron Weitzman who highlighted the often overlooked trait mastered by the Melbourne-born rising star.
“This season, Giddey, who will be participating Friday night in the NBA’s All-Star Weekend Rising Stars Game, has dished out 35 assists off inbounds passes, according to data provided by NBA Advanced stats. No other player this season has tossed more than 26,” Weitzman wrote.
“In his two NBA seasons he’s racked up 92 inbound assists, for an average of .88 per game. For a snapshot of just how impressive that is, Chris Paul and Kyle Lowry are the only players who have recorded more inbound assists over the past three seasons, and neither has done so at a rate close to Giddey’s.”
OKC head coach Mark Daigneault also lavished praise on the former No. 6 overall pick’s inbounds passing ability.
“We don’t have a play on the side or under that doesn’t allow him to pick something off if he sees it,” Daigneault said.
“We realised pretty early (his threat in that department) because he just started quarterbacking over there, he is pretty surgical in those situations and so tall that he can see over defences.
“And we account for it with everything we do.”
Giddey himself recently spoke about his thought process in these situations.
“I’m always aware of where guys are going to cut and where they’re going to be,” he said. “So I’ve tried to kind of develop the different options in my head, you know, before they actually happen, and think about ahead of time where the defence is going to be. If they’re not paying attention to me, I’m gonna hit the guy with a quick back-cut or back screen.
However, the former Adelaide 36er believes teams have started cottoning on recently and are more prepared to defend against his not-so-secret-anymore weapon.
“You can tell they’ve scouted it,” he said.
“Teams are starting to put a guy under the rim when we have a guy in the opposite corner, as a low man to kind of eliminate that basket.”
Giddey impressed playing for Team Joakim in the 2023 NBA Rising Stars Challenge, especially in his team’s 40-32 semi-final win against Jason Terry’s team where the Australian was dishing out dimes as he scored three points to go with six assists and three rebounds.
The rising Oklahoma City Thunder star even showed off his multi-tasking skills in the victory, running the offence while also speaking to the broadcast team while mic’d up.
In his short time on the court in the Rising Stars Challenge, Giddey was a walking highlight-reel and earned widespread praise from rival players who spoke to The Oklahoman’s Joe Mussatto on Saturday.
Knicks guard Quentin Grimes said Giddey was “almost a walking triple-double every night” while New Orleans’ Jose Alvarado described the Australian as “ahead of his time”.
Evan Mobley formed a strong connection with Giddey, who continually fed the Cavaliers forward the ball in the paint, with Mobley praising the Thunder point guard’s passing ability saying “he has great vision”.
Even the recently crowned NBA all-time leading scorer, LeBron James, spoke glowingly of the 20-year-old’s ability on the basketball court and forecast that Giddey would only continue to improve moving forward.
“Josh Giddey’s really, really good, man,” James said.
“Obviously, a tall point guard. He’s a triple-double type of playmaker every single night because of his ability to rebound at his size, his instinctive passing, and he has the ability to score in the paint.
“I think he’s going to continue to get better and better.”
The former St Kevin’s College product even received attention for his performance off the court over the All-Star weekend, turning up in a striking blue coat which he later explained was inspired by a post he saw from pop star Justin Bieber on Instagram.
“I saw it on Justin Bieber,” Giddey said.
“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.”
If Giddey can continue to be a dangerous playmaker and SGA can continue to play at an All-Star level for the rest of the season after the break, the Thunder will have a great chance to make the playoffs for just the second time
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JOE INGLES (Milwaukee Bucks)
Speaking of Aussies with great passing and playmaking skills, how good is it to see Ingles back on the court for the Milwaukee Buck since returning late last year from the ACL injury which ended his time with the Jazz.
When the Bucks signed Ingles they did so with the playoffs in mind. I’m sure the idea after such a long injury lay-off was to slowly insert him into their rotation and allow him to find his feet again before ramping up his workload ahead of the postseason and hopefully a run at the title.
However injuries to other players on Milwaukee’s roster – namely Khris Middelton, who has missed 40 of a possible 57 games so far this season – means that Ingles has been thrown in the deep end so to speak since returning in late December, averaging 18.7 minutes per game prior to the new year then ramping up to 23.5 and 24.6 minutes off the bench across January and February respectively.
The 35-year-old has really started to show why the Bucks – a team with championship aspirations – valued him so highly despite coming off a significant injury, shooting 56.3% on pull-up three’s with an 85.3 effective field goal percentage on all pull-up jump shots over his last 12 games.
Ingles offers great ball movement, quick decision making and a big body defensively as well as providing the team with a secondary ball-handler – providing a valuable addition to an already talented 40-17 Milwaukee squad that sit second in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Celtics by just a solitary game in the race for the No. 1 seed.
If the Bucks can find a way to keep all of their big three – Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Jrue Holiday – healthy alongside Ingles and recent trade acquisition Jae Crowder then they look as good a chance as any of winning the NBA championship this season.
DYSON DANIELS (New Orleans Pelicans)
Daniels is the latest victim of the injury curse which has decimated the New Orleans Pelicans’ roster this season after going down with a right ankle injury against the Denver Nuggets back on January 25th.
He has now missed the past 11 games as a result and will look to hopefully return after the All-Star break versus the Raptors on Feb 24 (AEDT).
Prior to the injury, Daniels had started in each of the team’s last six games, averaging 6.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals in 28.3 minutes per contest in an increased role with Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram both missing time.
The former No. 8 overall pick has been having a terrific rookie season, averaging 4.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.5 assists on 44.4 per cent shooting and 33.3 per cent from the three-point line in 20.3 minutes per game across 38 appearances.
More importantly Daniels had been carving out a reputation as a great defender, adding Jimmy Butler to the list of superstars he’s been assigned to by guarding the Miami Heat gun twice in three days prior to his untimely injury.
The 6-foot-7 guard boasts a +3.0 defensive RAPTOR this season according to FiveThirtyEight. This means he improves his team’s defensive performance by 3.0 points per 100 possessions while he is on the floor, ranking 28th in the entire NBA among those who have played more than 330 minutes this season.
One thing you can always count on with the 19-year old is high energy and effort whenever he steps onto the floor, receiving tremendous praise from his head coach Willie Green last month.
“Dyson has been doing great for us. A young guy — 19 years old — I’m kind of throwing him in the fire, especially with guys being out but he is handling it well,” he said.
“We know he is an excellent defender, a high-IQ basketball player on the floor. He’ll make some mistakes and those are things we can correct and continue to get better but he brings a ton of confidence into games.
“He has great size for a wing. He can play four positions and guard four positions so that makes him unique. We’ll continue to work together with our whole group. We’re excited about Dyson and what he brings to our team.”
The franchise view him as a key piece of their future and this is why New Orleans reportedly turned down significant interest in Daniels from around the league and refused to move him in any potential deals ahead of the trade deadline.
Unfortunately the Pelicans have been on a downward spiral since superstar Zion Williamson’s hamstring injury, going from first place in the West to seventh, but if they can find a way to get all their stars healthy and keep them on the court after the All-Star break then they should be able to give the playoffs a good shake and Daniels will is poised to play a key role in that.
PATTY MILLS (Brooklyn Nets)
It’s been a rough year for Mills.
When the 34-year-old signed a two-year $14.5 million extension with the Nets last off-season, he did so under the assumption that Brooklyn would be contending for the championship with a deep roster built around superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving coupled with a hopefully fit-again Ben Simmons.
The experienced veteran also probably planned on playing a key role in the teams pursuit of a maiden title, but alas, Mills has barely seen the court this season having only made 38 appearances so far and seeing his minutes per game shrink to their lowest in a decade (13.3).
There had been some hope that with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving being traded in the last couple of weeks that Mills may see an increase in his role, especially on the back of Patty reminding the NBA world what he could do in the Nets’ win over the Lakers at the end of January, scoring 21 points with four triples in 26 minutes off the bench in one of his best performances of the season.
Mills followed that up with a 13-point performance in 30 minutes in a win over the Washington Wizards a couple of weeks ago, but unfortunately has once again seen his role shrink in recent times.
If you take out the games against Lakers and Wizards, Mills has played a total of 79 minutes spread across 8 games.
More concerningly, Vaughn recently stated that as he figures out his new roster, the rotation will shrink, and against the Heat last Thursday, with everyone healthy, he played 10 players – with Patty Mills sitting out the game due to the coach’s decision not to play him. Vaughn also forecast that the rotation would shrink even further if they make the playoffs.
With KD and Kyrie both out the door and Simmons having looked like a shell of his former self since returning to the court after missing all of last season, the Nets are clearly not the contender they appeared to be prior to the season
With Mills having struggled for consistent minutes in Jacque Vaughn’s rotation and the franchise seemingly headed in a youthful direction, don’t be surprised if the two parties explore trade options at the end of the season.
Until then however Mills will remain the ultimate professional and ensure he is ready to help push the team towards a playoff run.
“I think we’ve got enough time to be able to do it. It’s the quality of things that you put together every single day,” Mills said recently in an interview with SNY.
“I think we’ve got enough time to be able to (establish) our identity and be able to make a push, for sure. It’s kind of like you just play the hand that you’re dealt. This train has gotta keep moving, it can’t stop.
“I’m very happy with who we have in our locker room now. We’ll just go out and go play together. This is no doubt a playoff team,”
Patty has been in playoffs in 12 of his 14 years in the league.