Gaze,while admitting he was biased,humorously described Giddey as a"poverty-stricken"version of NBA MVP candidate Luka Doncic while appearing on the NBL'sHuddle podcast.

"He's got innate skills in that he is 6'8 but he has got basketball IQ where he plays ahead of the game,he is a pass ahead all the time and is incredibly unselfish. He enjoys the pass,"Gaze said.

"He's fearless,won't take a backward step from anyone and he plays well with his teammates.

"I doubt we will see him here for very long."

Warrick Giddey knows his son plays almost the opposite of his own game which was based on defence,passing and rebounding. His former Tigers teammate Dave Simmons had a similar experience with his son Ben Simmons.

Giddey snr shot 0-21 from the three-point line in his career,a stat he challenges any player to get away with today,but father and son share an elite basketball IQ and ability to see passes others don't.

"Josh was lucky,through my job with the Tigers and with Melbourne United,he always had a ball in his hands from a young age,"Giddey toldThe Age last year.

"He had a 12-year start on me as I didn't start playing until I was 12. The kids of his generation had balls in their hands from birth,unlike our generation."

Josh has found the move into professional basketball a physical challenge as bigger stronger players look to take away the ball. His defence is being challenged too with Sixers coach Conner Henry opting to bring him off the bench on Friday so an experienced player could guardMelbourne import Scotty Hopson.

"The bigger bodies,the experienced guys – it's starting from the bottom again as in almost every team I've been in,I've been the man essentially,"Giddey said.

"So to start from the bottom,it's a feeling I've never had before but learning from the guys has been really fun."

Giddey,who made his Boomers debut last year,also scuttled scouting reports questioning his athleticism with a baseline dunk during pre-season and Friday night's effort.

"My legs have always been pretty strong but it was a bit of a surprise to me that I got up there for the[baseline] dunk,I was planning to lay it up,"Giddey said.

With previous Next Stars Ball and RJ Hampton now in their NBA rookie seasons,Giddey admits there is some expectation on him and fellow Aussie Mojave King,playing with the Cairns Taipans.

"Coming in as a Next Star,it does have hype behind it,"Giddey said.

"I try to stay out of it,play my game and hopefully when the season is done I've done well enough to hear my name called out in the draft."

The Adelaide 36ers play South East Melbourne Phoenix at Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Sunday at 3pm AEDT with the game live on SBS Viceland and ESPN.