Alex Caruso Shows Perfect Scenario Role for OKC Thunder

Oklahoma City’s trade acquisition put it all together on Wednesday night.

Nov 19, 2024; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) lays the ball in over San Antonio Spurs guard Chris Paul (3) in the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images / Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images

The Thunder didn’t play its best game against the Trailblazers on Wednesday night, but still walked away with a double digit win at home. Over the last three games, Oklahoma City’s 3-point shot has fallen flat, but Wednesday, they finally found a way to overcome it.

The main reasons for the Thunder’s win last night happened to be both of the big offseason acquisitions. Isaiah Hartenstein’s debut couldn’t have gone any better, as he fit in like a glove with an effortless double-double and smart play on both ends. In turn, Alex Caruso had his best game in a Thunder uniform, contributing heavily on both ends of the floor and finally finding his groove offensively. In all reality, Caruso showed what his perfect role in Oklahoma City could be down the road.

Caruso hasn’t been a threat offensively for the Thunder over the first few weeks of the season. His outside shot hasn’t been falling, and he hasn’t found a way to make an impact in transition. Of course, the defense hasn’t fallen off one bit — he’s still an elite defender — but the offensive fall-off has been notable and has hurt the Thunder’s floor spacing. On Wednesday, though, that all changed.

The do-it-all guard led Oklahoma City’s bench in scoring and finished third on the team behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams. He poured in a season-high 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 1-of-2 from 3-point range. He also added two steals, two assists, and one rebound. He played just 15 minutes of action before aggravating his previous hip injury. Although the injury doesn’t appear to be serious, the impact he had on the court was certainly noticeable.

Caruso has struggled mightily to find his role offensively, shooting 35.6% from the floor and 20.5% from 3-point range on the season — even counting Wednesday night’s stellar showing. He has been in all the right spots, doing all the right things, the shots just haven’t been falling and he hasn’t looked totally comfortable.

Wednesday night was a perfect depiction of what his ideal role looks like in Oklahoma City, though. He made a living in transition, attacking the basket and getting to the rim, and took minimal triples but shot at a high clip. He was an energy guy, a connector on the court, and showed a high level of chemistry for the first time with his new team. This is what the Thunder envisioned when trading for him last summer.

There’s still work to do, and Caruso has to continue doing this on a consistent basis. But Wednesday could be a springboard for the rest of the season, and give him the confidence he needs moving forward.

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