As Game 3 approaches, so much of how Thunder win goes right through Caruso
Oklahoma City can win so many different ways.
Claim 68 regular season games, dominate two of three playoff series on the way to the NBA Finals and it stands to reason.
It can win because it boasts the league MVP, because there are nights Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won’t let the Thunder lose.
It can win because it plays defense, allowing a league best 106.6 points per 100 opponent possessions during the regular season and 105.2 since the playoffs began.
It can sometimes win on coaching, lack of ego and the camaraderie that has the whole team participating in post-game interviews as it showers Nick Gallo with towels.
It can win because its big three, Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, are sometimes just too much.
It can win because it leverages depth, that long shunned commodity come playoff time, when teams typically decide playing their best players long minutes, frequently to the point of ineffectiveness, is the way to go.
This, though, is not about all the ways the Thunder can win, but about the two most bulletproof of them: depth and defense, and no player demonstrates both like Alex Caruso.
As you may know, the Thunder’s conference semifinal series against Denver turned when the 6-foot-5 Caruso went man-to-man against 6-11 Nikola Jokic, who was not the MVP this season, yet may still be the world’s best player.
Caruso needed help from teammates to make it work, but there was no mistaking his impact.
His ability to take on the role energized his teammates, demoralized the Nuggets and left watchers wondering how he did it.
Defense is also what should have won the Thunder Game 1 last Thursday, while depth is what convincingly beat the Pacers on Sunday.
Gilgous-Alexander, Williams and Holmgren were better that night, too, but not worlds better.
Defense also played a role, 107 points being not so many for the Pacers, who scored just 41 in the first half to trail by 18.
The Thunder bench, though, was dominant.
In that one, Caruso led, turning his 27:04 of court-time into 20 points on 6 of 11 shooting, 4 of 8 3-point shooting and 4 of 4 foul shooting.
Tuesday in Indianapolis, he was asked about his brand of leadership.
“Whether you’re in the NBA Finals or in game 15 of the season, you’re always trying to build toward the same thing,” he said. “You’re trying to build toward winning games, being a championship-caliber team.
“That’s something that I’ve always kind of had the mindset … whether I’ve been the 15th guy on the roster, or the seventh guy on the roster, or I’m closing games in the Finals.”
Caruso has been all three, playing several G-League seasons before sticking with the Los Angeles Lakers in time to win the 2020 NBA championship inside the Orlando bubble.
This is his first season with the Thunder following three with the Chicago Bulls.
Sunday, he led a Thunder bench that outscored the Pacer bench 48 to 34, and was still better than those figures indicate.
In addition to Caruso’s 20, Aaron Wiggins added 19 points in 20:32 on the court, finishing plus 24 to lead both teams.
Also from the Thunder bench, Isaiah Hartenstein netted only three points over 22:03, but still finished plus 17, while Kenrich Williams played only 7:37 and scored no points, yet something about the game’s energy changed when he entered, leading to his plus 15.
Believe it or not, Caruso’s plus-minus was a mere plus six. Of course, he played a majority of his time with the first unit and came up huge in the role.
Meanwhile, starter Cason Wallace, who played extensively with the second unit, finished plus 12, well ahead of OKC’s remaining starters.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault appreciates Caruso.
“He’s always doing the right thing,” Daigneault said. “He’s always competing, he’s always present, he’s always engaged, he’s always inside the team.
“When you do the right thing and walk the walk, it gives you an incredible platform to lead, both through example and, in his case, with the voice as well.”
Gilgeous-Alexander pointed out a very specific talent of Caruso’s.
“He plays defense off of feel and tendencies and awareness, almost like a lot of guys play offense,” SGA said. “It’s pretty special to see up close and personal every day. It’s literally a talent of his to feel the game the way he does defensively.
“It’s helped our team a lot.”
It’s the Thunder’s way to play a lot of players.
Through the playoffs, they may be doing something that’s never been done: not only sending out a nine- or 10-man rotation each night, but frequently a different nine- or 10-man rotation.
And if Oklahoma City’s bench keeps doing what it did Sunday and the whole roster defends, there’s virtually no scenario that doesn’t end in a championship, one running right through Caruso.
“He certainly has his fingerprints,” said Daigneault, “all over this team.”