Thunder Defense Ace Alex Caruso's Impact Goes Beyond Offensive Box Score

The Oklahoma City Thunder traded for defensive ace Alex Caruso over the summer which has turned out wonderfully on that end of the floor, but the offense is slow to come around. While Mark Daigneault is not worried, Caruso's impact goes far beyond the box score.

Nov 2, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) shoots against LA Clippers guard James Harden (1) during the second half at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images / Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder pulled off a shocking trade over the summer, shipping former No. 6 overall pick Josh Giddey to the Chicago Bulls in return for defensive ace Alex Caruso.

This trade came on the heels of a 57 win campaign but a season that got messy for Giddey as a misfit in the Thunder's system that ultimately led to him being benched - snapping a 218 game starting streak - in the team's second round series against the Dallas Mavericks.

At the start of the offseason, the young guard entering a contract year rejected a purposely to be come off the bench for the Thunder being one of the factors that led to the divorce.

Pulling off a one-for-one swap with the Bulls to acquire Caruso was a best case scenario outcome for the Thunder, but also a win for all sides involved. The defensive ace gets to join a title contender, Giddey gets to stretch his legs with more on-ball chances and playing for a guard whisperer in bench boss Billy Donovan.

The two things that were evident from the moment the trade was announced: The Thunder got a lot better in their quest for a title and Giddey will get to post monster counting stats for a middling at best Bulls squad.

That has bared out to start the season with Giddey averaging 14.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 0.8 stocks and 2.6 turnovers while shooting 44 percent from the floor, a career-best 44 percent from beyond the arc and 60 percent from the line.

On the flip side, Caruso is laboring on the offensive end searching for his pathway to produce within the Thunder's system as a scorer while posting 2.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.3 stocks per game while shooting a lowly 27 percent from the floor, 16 percent from beyond the arc and just 0-for-1 at the charity stripe.

This is not cause for concern for Thunder bench boss Mark Daigneault who was asked about the newcomer on Monday ahead of his outing against the Orlando Magic.

"Low sample is what I would say, and low volume is what I would say," Daigneault said. "He hasn't taken a ton of shots. It's a low sample in terms of games and low volume. But his impact on the team has been undeniable. I would expect his volume to tick up as well as the efficiency. I'm not worried about that at all."

The calm approach for Daigneault is warranted, the Thunder know Caruso is a career 37 percent 3-point shooter, including tossing in 40 percent from the 3 point line a year ago. The Thunder have absolutely reaped the benefits from Caruso defensively especially in this season.

Not only could Giddey not replicate what Caruso does defensively in general, but this campaign, the Thunder have had to lean on the former Bull to play the four and five at times with Isaiah Hartenstein, Jaylin Wiliams and Kenrich Williams on the shelf to start the year. While Giddey played the four in name only, Caruso is an effective option for Oklahoma City in a pinch.

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