Alex Caruso’s championship grit could power OKC to a title

The Oklahoma City Thunder are on a mission to win the title this season. It appears they’ve found the missing piece to their puzzle: Alex Caruso.

Caruso was a huge pickup for OKC during the off-season. The Thunder traded a rising young player, Josh Giddey, to the Chicago Bulls for Caruso’s toughness on defense.

Caruso has always been known as a defensive specialist. His defense helped the Los Angeles Lakers secure the championship in the 2020 Disney bubble.

Now Caruso brings his defense and his championship experience to OKC. During the season, Caruso had the second-best defensive rating at 99.6. He was behind teammate Cason Wallace, who had a 97.9 rating.

Still, it was the playoffs where Caruso’s defense became more valuable. This was especially true during the Thunder’s Game 7 matchup against the Denver Nuggets in the Semifinals.

Caruso drew the assignment of guarding Nikola Jokic when he entered the game. In comparison, Caruso stands 6’5″ and weighs 186 pounds. Jokic, on the other hand, is 6’11” and 284 pounds.

Despite this disadvantage, Caruso bothered Jokic all game long. Jokic scored 20 points in Game 7 while attempting just nine shots (5-9).

Caruso may now be tasked to stop Tyrese Haliburton in the NBA Finals. That won’t be an easy task, but if anyone can do it, it’s Alex Caruso.