Oklahoma City landing Alex Caruso in a trade was one of the best moves of the NBA offseason — the Thunder added an elite defender who can knock down 3s, has championship experience and fits right into their style of play.
That we are talking about Caruso as that level of player at all is a major accomplishment. He was undrafted out of Texas A&M, got a training camp contract with the Thunder that first year but spent most of that season playing for the Oklahoma City Blue of the G-League (under current Thunder coach Mark Daigneault). The following year, Caruso got a two-way contract with the Lakers, where his game grew, and he turned that opportunity into the career he has now.
What changed? How did he pull it off? Caruso created LeBron James and the confidence he gave Caruso in Los Angeles. Here is what Caruso said when speaking to Texasags.com (part of Texas Ags radio) (hat tip Hoops Rumors). Caruso was back in College Station for a golf tournament that will kick off the start of his charitable foundation.
“LeBron James’ love gave me confidence. Coming from someone of that stature, someone who is that smart and skilled and the face of the NBA, and arguably the greatest of all time, that means a lot. It gave me the confidence in myself to believe that what I was doing was right. It helped me believe that what I was good at could contribute and be a deciding factor in NBA games. All I ever wanted was to be out there at the end of the game and have a chance to win.”
Caruso heads to a team most pundits will have as the team to beat in the West. The Thunder are last season’s No. 1 seed in the conference who added Caruso and center Isaiah Hartenstien. Caruso talked about those expectations.
“I think that the Thunder’s success last year speaks for itself. Being first in the West is a tall task because of the buzzsaw and how much talent is in the Western Conference. It is weird now because we added some pieces in the offseason and resigned some of the young guys. Isaiah Harteinstein and I are phenomenal basketball players who can fit really well within the team. Looking at it on paper, we do a lot of stuff that those guys need that will help us be successful.”
On paper, the Thunder are the team to beat in the West this season. The challenge is that this is a deep conference where OKC will be challenged by Dallas, Minnesota, Denver and others (including LeBron and his Lakers). Still, the Thunder are in a position to play for a title.
Caruso will be a big part of that, and a big part of any serious playoff run they make.
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