Thunder Want to Retain Key Guard 'For a Long Time'

The Oklahoma City Thunder hope to keep Alex Caruso 'For a long time' according to General Manager Sam Presti.

Thunder general manager Sam Presti speaks during an introductory press conference for the 2024 Thunder draft picks at Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center in Oklahoma City, Saturday, June, 29, 2024. / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

While the Oklahoma City Thunder are viewed as the favorites in the West, the NBA is as much as an off-the-court sport as it is played on the hardwood. The devil is in the details and the strategy that comes with team building at times can get more attention than the nightly buckets superstars get throughout the winter.

This summer, Thunder executive Sam Presti made a massive move. Oklahoma City shipped out the No. 6 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, Josh Giddey, for defensive ace Alex Caruso, fresh off his second all-defensive season.

As this move is widely praised, cementing the Thunder's status as contenders, there is still a lingering question as they straight up swap shuffled around a pair of expiring contracts.

The Thunder can not issue Alex Caruso a contract extension until December but at that time, the stars seem to be aligning for the two sides to agree to a contract extension.

"I think it's clear that he fits a lot of the characteristics and the criteria that we value. Having had him here starting with the Blue, every time I say that, we're also admitting that we completely fumbled the ball on that, but we also did identify him, but we weren't smart enough to keep him." Presti joked at his annual preseason media availability, "We know, I think, enough to want to have him here for a really long time based on his performance at his different stops but the human that we know from having been around him in the short time that he was here."

Re-signing Caruso is a no brainer in terms of player impact as one of the best defenders in the sport who can scale one through four on that end of the floor while providing high end shooting, pitch in as a playmaker and fits the active style the Thunder play on both sides of the hardwood.

While no one quite knows what an extension looks like for the 30-year-old, but it seems like the deal will happen before Christmas presents are unwrapped.

---

Want to join the discussion? Like Thunder on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.