esports_consultant

471 | 3 hours ago

Imagine how much different the Lebron Lakers tenure would have looked if they kept him.

South_Oread | Thunder

139 | 3 hours ago

Baffling.

Adept-Eggplant-8673 | Rockets

118 | 3 hours ago

Luka Caruso LeBron Zubac… wouldve been a crazy fucking roster

kamekaze1024

36 | 2 hours ago

As stupid as he was I still think Nico would’ve wanted Caruso for Luka. The only question is, would that be Caruso+AD or just one of the two

gerardatron | LAL

29 | 2 hours ago

I’m sure AD would still have to be included.

But, Caruso+AD could also mean the Mavs give someone else up like maybe a big. Plus the Lakers could have been able to keep Max Christie

40866892 | Lakers

9 | an hour ago

I refuse to believe Caruso wouldn’t have resulted in another ring at least for the Bron-AD era

FreddyKruegersGlove | Lakers

-1 | an hour ago

We beat Denver if we had him instead of Dlo on defense in 2023. Then we definitely win the 2020s Finals rematch

Neemzeh | Timberwolves

1 | 10 minutes ago

Lol

Conflict_NZ | Lakers

1 | an hour ago

I believe Zubac’ cap hold would’ve prevented us from signing LeBron/a max player and that’s why he was moved.

outsidehere | Lakers

49 | 3 hours ago

Rob Pelinka baby

donuttrackme | Spurs

15 | 2 hours ago

I mean, he was also behind the winning half of the worst trade in NBA history.

outsidehere | Lakers

28 | 2 hours ago

Like I said, Rob Pelinka baby

ebobb_play_skyrim | Lakers

7 | an hour ago

Typically Rob’s moves are either absolutely disastrous or insanely good.

Luka trade obviously is the spotlight, but the Rui, Smart and Kennard pickups were A++

Westbrook trade is part of the F- column

GriffinQ | WAS

1 | 42 minutes ago

Is Rob Pelinka the Westbrook of executives?

Extreme variance between excellence and garbage.

kiss_the_homies_gn

1 | an hour ago

Serious question, does that matter if they don’t get anything out of it?

Cautious_End4838 | Lakers

3 | an hour ago

Yes having Luka as your marquee player for next ten years matters a lot towards ($$$) and fan sanity even if they dont win a title.

FreddyKruegersGlove | Lakers

2 | an hour ago

Exactly. I’d rather be ringless with a superstar than ringless like we were in the late kobe, pre lebron years

KingJeet

4 | an hour ago

They were not 1 alex caruso from winning another championship though…

benfranklin16

7 | an hour ago

Jamal Murray doesn’t average 33 ppg in the 2023 WCF that’s for sure.

rainmaker2332

1 | 6 minutes ago

Doesn’t matter cuz the Lakers don’t win that series regardless lol

cardmanimgur | Timberwolves

3 | an hour ago

Too bad he wasn’t a Klutch client.

CasualHindu | Hornets

457 | 3 hours ago

Talentless Horton-Tucker OVER MEEE??

Frodounchainedd | Lakers

58 | 3 hours ago

Tht being repped by klutch makes it worse

GMoney_McSwag | Bulls

1 | 33 minutes ago

The comments said it was Pelinka’s fault though?

National-Size-7205 | Heat

55 | 3 hours ago

Talen Heaves a Two was my favorite.

h-ugo | New Zealand

61 | 2 hours ago

It was Horton Heaves a Two. Kids these days have no respect for the Dr.

MrTotnum | Nuggets

6 | 2 hours ago

horton

spleev | San Francisco Warriors

23 | 3 hours ago

Talentless Horseshit-Chucker

fakemelonns

1 | 3 minutes ago

Still the most egregious decision I’ve seen. Caruso was the perfect role player and THT was one of the most overrated players I’ve ever seen. I never saw the appeal in him

Asleep_Ground1710 | Bulls

193 | 3 hours ago

Caruso is going to go up there in GOAT NBA roleplayers

SAM12489 | Warriors

99 | 3 hours ago

He is the prototypical 6th man on a championship team. A guy that starts on a lot of teams…but the best teams with the most depth and real chances of winning have guys like him off the bench.

JagmeetSingh2

24 | 3 hours ago

yep he’s such a great piece

40866892 | Lakers

4 | an hour ago

Starting or not starting doesn’t matter. His job is to be a disruptor that punishes the opposing team. On offense he can slide to a corner and knock down threes OR cut on dunkers lane. He’s the perfect player tbh

johanan9107 | GSW

1 | 4 minutes ago

if he’s in at the last minute of a clutch game in any situation, he’s a starter to me. And a damn good one

misteremails

11 | 3 hours ago

Wtf he has 16 right now

skwirly715 | NYK

4 | 2 hours ago

Only because they allow him to foul

pagonator | 76ers

180 | 3 hours ago

Yeah this shouldn’t be a series where you start Ihart

EarthWarping | NBA

41 | 3 hours ago

Will be starting game 2 (AC)

thpskier | Spurs

12 | 2 hours ago

I saw a really interesting article about Caruso, how he is really good but is way better off the bench. He doesn’t have the stamina to be a starter, but as a spark plug off the bench he’s one of the most impactful players in the league.

fullcreamy | Spurs

1 | 2 hours ago

This is absolutely a thing, I played state basketball in Australia for a couple years was always pitched to start but I just couldn’t perform, coming off the bench was a big mentality thing for me as well. See how the game develops, pace, spacing etc

IRanOutOf_Names | Heat

20 | 3 hours ago

He’s been incredible vs Kornet but Wemby just makes him unplayable. He had some decent Gortat screens on Wemby, but giving Wemby free roam is death.

floridabeach9

3 | 2 hours ago

an extra big for wemby is good in theory, but in practice the spurs are actually very small 1-4 and he’ll get cooked. and like you said wemby can pack the paint on defense

samhit_n | Lakers

85 | 3 hours ago

The Lakers really gave up Caruso and Zubac for literally nothing.

Responsible_Focus424 | Lakers

8 | an hour ago

Nah gave him up for LeBron and Klutch…

Snoo93550

49 | 3 hours ago

Every single “defensive highlight” from Caruso is just an insanely obvious foul. He should have 4 fouls already just from the obvious stuff.

flintmichigantropics | Celtics

28 | 3 hours ago

His off ball holds are ridiculous

JuliusCeejer |

28 | 3 hours ago

It’s why he ‘defends’ bigs so well. They never call anything on the guy who’s a foot shorter

Snoo93550

13 | 2 hours ago

Imagine if they let power forwards just bear hug players as hard as possible. It’s the most ludicrous thing I’ve seen in 40 years watching the league. Why? I don’t get it.

jump-back-like-33 | Nuggets

25 | 3 hours ago

This is my surprised face

karlwhethers | Timberwolves

2 | 2 hours ago

[ Removed by Reddit ]

jaypooner | Lakers

43 | 3 hours ago

Rob Lowe let this dude walk for fucking nothing

ositola | Lakers

15 | 3 hours ago

That was Jeanie

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

31 | 3 hours ago

It’s not a surprise that the double big lineup struggles vs Wemby. Might be worth starting Ajay or Cason

jordan1390 | Thunder

9 | 3 hours ago

It’s reassuring how quickly we went away from it at least.

Upset_West_8233

30 | 3 hours ago

he also hacked castle pretty good.

Snoo93550

29 | 3 hours ago

They just let him foul limitlessly.

KeiPirate5 | Bulls

22 | 3 hours ago

I’m happy for him. Also our FO did not get a 1st when they traded him.

escapedhousefly | Magic

4 | 2 hours ago

At least Giddey is better than expected, but yea, should’ve gotten at least a first for him.

TheBirdsFlySouth | Bulls

4 | an hour ago

The amount of people on the bulls subreddit that think this trade was fair is mind boggling to me. Giddey was unplayable for OKC in the playoffs. Caruso gets them a chip. We had all the leverage! OKC has more picks than they know what to do with!

tallassmike | Warriors

13 | 3 hours ago

That’s hilarious tuning in to see Caruso try to reach in to a wemby drive 7’6 with a 8” wingspan just so he can flop.

Even wemby looked annoyed but he got the call for that.

[edit] also, when did reach in fouls stop existing? Wtf

Shmobby_Burda | NBA

13 | 3 hours ago

greatest roleplayer of all time

Ok_Coat_6413

7 | 3 hours ago

Robert horry?

DimGrows

-12 | 3 hours ago

Move over Kyle Lowry, there’s a new GROAT

fredlikefreddy | Thunder

10 | 3 hours ago

When was Kyle Lowry a role player

HikmetLeGuin

5 | 3 hours ago

Maybe you’re joking. But GROAT for Lowry means Greatest Raptor.

Lowry wasn’t a role player.

CloneWarsMaul | Celtics

4 | 3 hours ago

Calling Lowry a role player???

BonerReplies

5 | 3 hours ago

kyle lowry ain’t no spot up shooter he aint gotta run to the corner to shoot like hes some 3rd option bitch this aint jj redick this is a fuckin god human steph curry come again only this time hes not a fuckin pussy pull up from the fuckin logo and fight you at the same time

TheBottomLine_Aus | Raptors

1 | 3 hours ago

That’s disrespectful to Kyle Lowry, dude was way more than a role player. He was a number 2 option on many playoff teams and a number 3 option on a championship winning team.

He was the starting point guard in all those teams. He isn’t a role player.

Ready_Opportunity766

2 | 3 hours ago

How are you a Raptors fan and don’t know the original meaning of GROAT

TheBottomLine_Aus | Raptors

1 | 3 hours ago

My autism did not pick up on the context change lol….

I’m truly, truly stupid.

Youngandidiotic | Warriors

1 | 3 hours ago

He was always better and more important than Demar. I feel like was still the 2nd best player that on that championship team even if he wasn’t always the 2nd scoring option

TheBottomLine_Aus | Raptors

1 | 3 hours ago

Agreed, he was more important than Pascal, but a 3rd option for scoring.

Demar was the best player, just not in playoffs. My boy had some demons he struggled with unfortunately.

imslightlyhandsome | Rockets

1 | 3 hours ago

kyle lowry ain’t no spot up shooter he aint gotta run to the corner to shoot like hes some 3rd option bitch this aint jj redick this is a fuckin god human steph curry come again only this time hes a fuckin pussy pull up from the fuckin logo and fight you at the same time.

WinBroad3618

13 | 3 hours ago

playing football out there, not moved

Rickyowensdenim

12 | 3 hours ago

I mean he has defensive immunity. It’s like watching the basketball version of the purge. A lot of players could have Caruso’s impact if they had free reign to play basketball like Brian Urlacher

loscarlos | Kings

6 | 3 hours ago

If I had the option to nuke OKC I would let Caruso live in a cage in some facility somewhere else.

ExpressionAlone5204 | Thunder

6 | 3 hours ago

People often mention that we might try to trade him… yeah if you’re done trying to win a championship go ahead

Can you imagine if the Spurs got Caruso? Window just closes itself immediately.

Abyss333333 | Toronto Huskies

9 | 3 hours ago

Its crazy you can say that last sentence about a role player and still be correct

Fast_Grass_5178

3 | 3 hours ago

He’s always been a solid role player need him to knock down some threes this series

Inevitable_Big_1966 | Raptors

3 | 3 hours ago

We don’t care unless he’s on foul trouble

mahalovalhalla | Trail Blazers

3 | 2 hours ago

Imagine trading away Caruso. Some teams overthink basketball. Just collect as many winning players as possible. Caruso is the definition of a winning player

Jolly_Search_7180

3 | an hour ago

someone please throw a bag at him and get him back on a mid team

japanesepopstar

2 | 2 hours ago

I’m sure he’s a classic love him when he’s yours guy, but the whole Thunder team plays so cynically and takes gamesmanship beyond where it’s enjoyable to watch for me. Hope the Spurs smack them up.

soycameron | Trail Blazers

1 | 3 hours ago

Caruso needs to play 35 minutes and Hartenstein shouldn’t touch the floor if Wemby is on it

Minimum_Inevitable58

1 | 2 hours ago

Spurs are gonna force him to beat them all series. They put Wemby on him because he’s the weakest shooter and his 3s are still yet to make Wemby leave the paint. Thunder have to adjust better than just taking what the Spurs are intentionally giving them. Caruso is the only player that has gained any rhythm and it’s just not going to work out for the Thunder for a whole series.

Maybe there’s some better adjustment but at this point I rather see guys go to the rim and not worry if Wemby gets some blocks. The man is having free reign with no risk of fouls or even needing to playing hard.

The Thunder are playing scared and right into the Spurs hands.

thiswasandy | Spurs

1 | an hour ago

He’s been incredible.

Shivles87 | Mavericks

1 | 20 minutes ago

Alex “MVP” Caruso

UnlitBlunt | Raptors

0 | 3 hours ago

Carushow game incoming

StraightShootahh | Nets

0 | 2 hours ago

Bulls really gave up an all time great role player for “Giddey”

OKC and Bulls really on two opposite ends of the spectrum in FO competency.

Genericthrowaw4y | Thunder

-2 | 3 hours ago

OKC DYNASTY FULL FORCE

Fancy_Exchange_9821 | Spurs

-17 | 3 hours ago

Bro had his 1 moment to shine for the entire series imo

Casualrodfarva2 | San Francisco Warriors

8 | 3 hours ago

optimistic from you huh?

Subject_One_1673 | 76ers

7 | 3 hours ago

nah, Caruso is different bro. elite role player.

Glittering_Dig8435 | Thunder

5 | 3 hours ago

Ask jokic if this will be true or not

RazorAvocado

-3 | 3 hours ago

Yes allowed to foul relentlessly

wombatpup55 | Spurs

5 | 3 hours ago

Slow down pal

ButlerFromDowntown | Bulls

1 | 2 hours ago

It’s incredible how Caruso has been a key part of two championship teams and is still so underrated. You are going to notice his presence all throughout this series if you actually watch it.

Alex Caruso checked in at 9:24 in the first quarter with the Thunder down 0-7. That’s the earliest Caruso has checked into a game all season. Caruso rewards the decision with 10 pts, 1 stl, and 1 blk, +2 in 5 minutes while taking the Wemby assignment defensively