'Weird player': Josh Giddey's remarkable 50-year NBA first

Australian NBA rookie Josh Giddey has etched his name into the history books with a stat line so unconventional it hasn't been seen in 50 years.

The OKC Thunder snapped a four-game winning streak for the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday, claiming a 117-112 win behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's 31 points.

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It was Giddey who had the most eye-catching line of the night though, despite not scoring a single point.

The 19-year-old finished with 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the game, his fifth double-double of the season.

Incredibly, it is the first time any NBA player has put up a double-double without scoring a single point since 1971, when Norm Van Lier did so for the now defunct Cincinnati Royals.

The bizarre line lead to plenty of admiration from NBA fans on social media, while Thunder coach Mark Daigneault was impressed with Giddey's ability to impact the game on a night where he simply couldn't get his shot to fall.

Giddey went 0-8 from the floor, not that Daigneault was too concerned.

“If you’re playing 82 games (in a season), long minutes, night after night, there are going to be lots of ups and downs,” the coach said.

“There are going to be times when you’re in rhythm, there are going to be times when your body’s sore, there are going to be times when you feel like your shooting is effortless.

“You’ve got to be able to find some consistency and tap into the things that you can rely on every night and that you can control every night. To his credit, I thought for a lot of the game he controlled a lot of what he could control.

“I think he was frustrated by the shooting and who can blame him?”

Daigneault went on to say the game would be a 'good lesson' for the youngster.

Aussies shine in big day of NBA action

While Giddey struggled to get his shot going, San Antonio Spurs big man and fellow Aussie star Jock Landale had no such problems against the Detroit Pistons.

Landale posted a career-high 18 points in just 17 minutes off the bench, outscoring Spurs starting centre Jakob Poetl (14 points) as San Antonio thumped the Pistons 1440-109.

Landale added five rebounds and three assists in a busy performance before home fans.

Keldon Johnson led with 27 points but Landale was the team's second-highest scorer as the Spurs (14-18) put up their biggest points tally of the season against the struggling Pistons (5-27).

San Antonio have won three straight and four of five to move into 10th in the Western Conference but now face playing five games in seven days.

Landale's effort off the bench earned some hard-earned praise from legendary Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.

“He’s an intuitive player,” Popovich said.

“He understands what’s going on. He’s good with the ball, a good passer and doesn’t try to do things he’s not capable of doing. He plays a wise game.”

Detroit had five players out in the league's health and safety protocols, including top draft pick Cade Cunningham, while Jerami Grant and Kelly Olynyk are also out with injuries.

The Spurs were among the few teams not impacted by COVID-19 this season, but that changed Sunday morning when star Dejounte Murray was ruled out.

With AAP

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