I watched him last night. Let me tell you about Giles, the good and the not so good. Giles has a beautiful offensive game. He has a soft touch. He has a face up game. He has a jab step. He has touch with his left hand. He has a drop step. He has a high release point. He can deliver pinpoint passes. It is not difficult to see why the Kings fell in love with him and drafted him when they did. The offensive repertoire is complete. Scoring is easy for him. Passing is easy for him. Reading and picking apart defenses is easy for him. He knows it and plays with a swagger and confidence. He will body his man in the post to create separation. This is a little thing but it is more than what Willie does.
Now, the not so good. He has an air of self-entitlement about him. He never had to try that hard to get rebounds or play defense because he was so much better athletically. He cannot fall back on that any more. He has to do his work early to get rebounds and take away real estate on the floor. He doesn't do that. He is not active enough. Not nearly enough. He doesn't respect his opponent enough, like Cousins back in the day. He needs to be humbled so that he transforms his mindset with regards to defending and rebounding. Maybe that is what the G League assignments are intended to do.
Giles runs in a straight line. I do not see him move laterally. When does he slide his feet to cut off penetration? I don't see it. You cannot be a good player in the NBA if you do not move laterally. If you only move in one plane. His hops are not great but look improved from the start of the year. If Giles wants to be taken seriously as a player, this is next step, play defense with your feet not your hands. Recognize you are not going up against high schoolers any more that you can overwhelm. The talent gap has closed. You need to exert more effort and technique to realize your potential.