Report: Josh Giddey's allegations may lead to $40,000,000 in missed sponsorships for Aussie star
Over the past week, OKC Thunder guard Josh Giddey has been connected to a scandal involving an underage girl. Recent reports indicate that this investigation could result in him losing a massive amount of sponsorship money.
As of now, Josh Giddey has not received any sort of punishment. The league continues to investigate his siutation after multiple photos and videos surfaced of him in a relationship with a girl that is allegedly 15 years old.
While this situation continues to unfold, some sponsors have decided to get out in front of things. Weet-Bix, a brand of cereal in Australia, has removed the OKC Thunder guard from all of their social media accounts. This could lead to him missing out on the $40 million deal he had with the company.
This is a substantial amount of money for Giddey to lose, as he is still on his rookie contract in the NBA. This season marks the third year of a four-year deal he agreed upon after getting drafted. Giddey is set to make $6.5 million this year and $8.3 million in 2025.
Josh Giddey continues to play despite NBA investigation
Typically, when players are getting investigated by the league, teams will keep them away. However, that has not been the case with Josh Giddey. Even with everything going on around him, the OKC Thunder decided to have him suit up over the weekend.
The Thunder's first game since the scandal broke was on Saturday against the Philadelphia 76ers. Giddey ended up playing 26 minutes in the four-point loss and finsihed with a stat line of 10 points, seven rebounds and eight assists.
Before the game, OKC coach Mark Daigneault was asked about having Giddey available to play. He felt it wasn't even a decision based on the information that they had at that time.
"Just with the information that we have at this point, that's the decision that we made," Daigneault said. "It's really not even a decision to be honest with you."
From the beginning, Giddey and members of the Thunder have said little regarding the investigation. When asked about the situation following a practice last week, the young guard declined to give a response. Daigneault has followed a similar approach, stating that it is a league matter now.
Giddey, who just turned 21 last month, is in his third year with the Thunder. They drafted him sixth overall in 2021 out of Australia.