‘Zero class’: NBA commentator shredded for Josh Giddey call

An NBA commentator was slammed by fans for his comments on Josh Giddey, as the Aussie survived a scary fall against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Fans have slammed an NBA commentator for their comments on Josh Giddey. Picture: Alex Goodlett/Getty Images

NBA fans have ripped into commentator Alaa Abdelnaby for his claim he “could care less” what happened to Australian rookie Josh Giddey as the youngster landed awkwardly after a collision with Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid.

The 19-year-old enjoyed his best NBA stat line yet, posting 19 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and four steals as the 76ers ran out 115-103 winners over Oklahoma City Thunder, but a frightening moment in the dying minutes of the game had fans worried.

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Giddey and his Thunder teammates were on a fast break with less than two minutes on the clock in the fourth quarter and as the Aussie youngster went up for an easy two-pointer, Embiid clattered into him and both men came crashing down as Giddey drew the clear foul.

The Thunder man appeared to come off worse as he landed heavily on the floor, but thankfully he was able to walk off the impact as a chorus of boos echoed around the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.

Embiid, the much larger man between the two, was almost straight back to his feet but did apologise to Giddey as he went to take his free throw attempts.

But according to Abdelnaby, he wasn’t too fussed about what happened to Giddey in the collision so long as Embiid was OK.

“Jo Jo [Embiid] just not going to give up the easy two,” Abdelnaby said.

“I just worry about when he falls. No offence to Giddey, I could care less.

“But this guy, you don’t want to see him fall awkwardly because you worry as a Sixers fan.”

Abdelnaby, a former Philadelphia player himself and 76ers colour analyst on NBC Sports Philadelphia, was speaking with some bias but it didn’t go unnoticed by fans on social media.

They were quick to slam Abdelnaby, with a basketball agent even describing the former player’s comments as having “zero class.”

First ballot HOF for poor takes ?

“No offense to Giddey, but I could care less…” 🤦🏻‍♂️

I got a feeling there might be a bit of offense taken… https://t.co/TAiPEDHe8K

— Peter Hooley (@PeterHooley12) October 25, 2021

Things we learned tonight:

1) @alaatweets has zero class.
2) @alaatweets has zero grasp of proper grammar.
3) @joshgiddey is tough as nails. https://t.co/uGhKMnCcYc

— Daniel Moldovan (@AgentMoldovan) October 25, 2021

What. Did the Sixers commentator just say 'he could care less' about Giddey? 😑

I guess he thinks 'no offense' can excuse anything.pic.twitter.com/wuNFvoDTEy

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) October 25, 2021

After Josh Giddey was fouled hard and fell awkwardly, the Sixers commentator said "I could care less about Giddey".

Maybe he should care about Giddey finishing with 19 PTS, 8 REB, 7 AST, 4 STL on 8-13 FG.
pic.twitter.com/m4YezQ5Syl

— StatMuse (@statmuse) October 25, 2021

Josh Giddey 10/10 for a great game.
Commentary a big fat 0 https://t.co/xqV8a4oUsx

— Stephen Quartermain (@Quartermain10) October 25, 2021

Speaking after the game, Giddey said he was OK after his fall.

The game against the 76ers was the first time Giddey had scored in double figures since the regular season began.

He has been generating some serious hype ever since his debut last week, where he put up 10 rebounds — the most rebounds made by a Thunder player on debut.

It was a performance that showed exactly why Oklahoma City took him with the No. 6 draft pick earlier this year.

With Tyson Otto

Josh Giddey suffered a big fall when he collided with Joel Embiid late in the fourth quarter of the Thunder’s match against the 76ers. Picture: Zach Beeker/NBAE via Getty Images

Originally published as ‘Zero class’: NBA commentator shredded for Josh Giddey call