https://twitter.com/StephNoh/status/1722640590041461182?t=RI-57QRr95_-f4ux_Czlxg&s=19
Alex Caruso gave Kevin Durant hell last night. Deep dive on how he did it.
Turn sound on to hear why Caruso is a defensive savant.
Breakdown of Caruso’s performance defensively last night vs the Suns.
Will love when he’s on the bucks
This is content that i want to see in this sub
/r/justbasketball
Durant is 6’ 11”. Caruso is 6’ 5”, 6 inches shorter.
Can we please see Caruso play for a real contender during his prime?
I’ll never get over the Lakers choosing THT over Caruso.
i was jus about to comment this. even before i had the knowledge hindsight brought i knew THT over Caruso jus wasn’t good. fuckin makes me nauseous lol
You didn’t account for the dawg coefficient.
Man the short time that Caruso+Ball lasted was fantastic. Shame Lonzo ended up like this
Was a good look tho by KD lol. Not taking away from the analysis just saying
As Dwight Howard once said “the D was good tonight”
There are 11 players who have ranked in the top 3 in either 3 year RAPM (unadjusted or luck-adjusted) in the past 10 years.
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Jokic
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Embiid
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Kawhi
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Tatum
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Giannis
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PG13
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Curry
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Lebron
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CP3
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Lowry
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Caruso
That’s the list. The plus minus data suggests he’s a slight positive on offense, and the most impactful defensive guard per possession we’ve ever seen. He lead the league in forced turnovers per 100 last year, on top of being an excellent contester. Obviously, he plays less minutes, so he has less cumulative impact than the other guys on this list.
source: https://www.nbarapm.com
No offence but the actual more advanced n better plus minus derived data like epm show he’d a big negative on offence but his defence value is higher. Ultimately I’m gonna go with eye test . Those metrics are clearly flawed . Caruso doesn’t start or get starter minutes for a bad team. On a good team or in the playoffs he’ll get treated like 2021 playoffs : dared to shoot n ignored , passes out of good looks, doesn’t shoot well etc he’s a non factor on offence and it’s why he was let go ultimately. I miss him so does ever lakers fan but it’s absurd if you watched him to think he’s nothing but a niche filling role player. His offence looks far worse too especially without Bron. He’s not a player contenders are dying for because they watch every game and see him routinely go scoreless or hit one shot. Still has uses but flaws , that he can’t grow out of .
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Caruso did play excellent defense. One thing that has been crazy since KD has been here though is how physical teams are allowed to get with him off-ball. There were some replays on turnovers last night that I couldn’t believe weren’t called, seems like the scouting report is just to be as physical as possible with him before he gets the entry pass because that does work, and over the course of the game the refs just kind of don’t want to call every grab or shove away from the ball that would be a fouls in a lot of situations. Not anything unique to Caruso, happens in a ton of our games.
That’s my future 76er right there. Get it AC!
Him putting his body into player’s space to not allow them to move how they want reminds me of a quote about Jrue Holiday
Someone a couple years ago said Jrue was the hardest defender to play against in be league because he had this technique where as you’re driving by him, he’s always pressing really hard down on your hip so that you can’t properly move
why isn’t he starting?
I’m a simple man, when I see Alex Caruso content, I smash the upvote button.
KD’s handle is getting looser by the day. I get worried every time he brings it up now.
Can’t wait til Sixers scoop this guy at the deadline
I fucking love this man. Caruso is so fun to watch. Awesome breakdown!
Also I love how r/nba now has an uptick in defensive highlights, let’s keep this going! Defense is satisfying AF to watch
Alex Caruso has always been a champion defensive player. He is always hustling and guarding the opponent’s best player without complaining. He does all the little things for the team. He’s a big reason why the Lakers won in 2020.