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When the Oklahoma City Thunder added Alex Caruso, he was a popular pick to be a potential X-factor in the playoffs. Shuffle their 103-101 win over the LA Clippers to the top of the evidence case to how that can look on the court. In his second start of the season, the 31-year-old single-handily changed the outcome.
Caruso finished with 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting, six rebounds and five assists. He shot 2-of-7 from 3 and went 2-of-4 on free throws. He also had two steals.
The final two minutes of a two-point game turned into a personal Caruso highlight package. First, he scored a critical corner 3-pointer to give the Thunder the lead. Then he stole the ball on the next possession when James Harden threw it in on the inbound pass.
Caruso split a pair of free throws when fouled to avoid giving up the easy layup. The small mistake was quickly forgiven. He shut down Kawhi Leonard in the final seconds and didn't let him get to any of his favorite mid-range spots. Instead, he was held to his ground and forced to take a contested deep jumper.
Up by three points, Caruso made the savvy play to foul Leonard. The Thunder could afford to let him get to the free-throw line with three seconds left. The plan worked out as OKC escaped with an impressive road win thanks to the 31-year-old stepping up in the final moments.
Here's what the Thunder said about Caruso's heroics against the Clippers:
Mark Daigneault
On Caruso: "He's just such a winner. He's got great competitive instincts. Great situational awareness. He's always present in the game and never distracted by how the game is going for him. He plays the next play the same way. The defensive versatility and intellect is also huge. To be able to put him on Leonard and move him to Harden."
Alex Caruso
On playing with Lu Dort and Cason Wallace: "It allows you to play aggressively knowing that if someone picks up fouls or someone gets by you, you have guys that can easily pick them up and you don't have to worry too much about trying to get out of a matchup or take advantage of it. It just gets us going. No matter whose night it is — some nights it's me, some nights it's Cason, some nights it's Lu, sometimes it's Hart, Chet, Dub, Shai — there's a handful of players who get it going defensively. Whoever has that energy and moxie, we just kinda follow their lead."
On his defensive mindset going against the NBA's best players: "Part of that is just being hungry to compete for every single possession because playing against greatness brings greatness out of you. Every time that I get to play against potential Hall-of-Fame guys, guys that are All-NBA, All-Stars, I get excited I know that it's going to bring the best out of me."
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
On Caruso: "He just affects the game. Whatever the game needs and calls for, he's willing to do. Tonight, he made the corner 3 and then gets the steal on back-to-back possessions. There's been games you don't notice him out there. There's been games where he's been hurt a lot. Whatever the game calls and team needs, he does and gets it done. Because of that, he's been successful in the NBA."
Lu Dort
On Caruso: "That’s the type of player AC is. Every time it’s time to step up, he’ll be there. He was open. He shot it with confidence and then defensively, I’m not surprised. He’s been doing that his whole career and he did that again tonight."
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: What OKC Thunder said about Alex Caruso in 103-101 win over Clippers
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