Jun 22, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) dunks against the Indiana Pacers during the first half of game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Thunder Guard Shows Love in Visit to English Football Club's First Home Bout of Season

Originally posted on Oklahoma City Thunder on SI
By Nate Aker | Last updated Aug 22, 2025 4:20 PM ET

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso is still making the most of his championship summer, this time making his way over to the United Kingdom.

Manchester City, the storied English Football Club, recently invited Caruso out to its first match of the season, providing him and his wife with Manchester City jerseys and giving them a full-fledged experience of the stadium. An avid football fan, Caruso has surely been enjoying himself this summer.

Caruso was one of many unsung heroes for his team in the OKC Thunder this past season where they went on to claim an NBA title as one of the youngest teams in history to do so. He wa s the dedicated veteran to that team, and he provided so much guidance and value in his role throughout the entirety of the postseason.

Despite struggling with injury issues through the regular season, he bounced back and offered a postseason of 9.2 points per game (across 23 games), which was the highest he'd averaged in his entire playoff career. But more importantly, the defensive stud wreaked passing lane havoc, averaging two steals and over a half a block per game during the Thunder's title run.

And when looking at defensive rating among players who competed in 10 or more games in these past playoffs, he ranked ninth with a 101.6. Five of those nine ahead of him were his teammates—Chet Holmgren, Aaron Wiggins, Cason Wallace, Kenrich Williams and Jaylin Williams.

Caruso would rank fifth in steal rate and third in steals as well.

His impact couldn't have been understated. Caruso was a vet this team needed to make it over the hump, and he bailed out a lagging offense on the road with impeccable defense and a knack to spark momentum several times.

He's been invaluable, and will certainly look to do the same next year. Not looking like he'll slow down any time soon, Caruso's best postseason of his career came last year—beating out his performance on the Los Angeles Lakers in their 2020 championship run.

He improved in a majority of categories on a standard stat sheet. Best field goal percentage, three-point percentage, most steals and points, this also isn't measuring his true impact he added on the floor as a defensive nuisance. And he did it throughout his staggered health in the regular season too, having the best defensive rating in the league among players who played over 40 games.

Caruso's summer has been one to celebrate, and he'll look to go into next summer just as happy, if not more.

This article first appeared on Oklahoma City Thunder on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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