Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso has established himself as one of the better defenders in the NBA. Caruso gets the hardest assignments on a nightly basis, and during an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show, he spoke about the difficulties when it comes to guarding Stephen Curry.
“That’s the biggest thing that people talk about that I don’t know if regular NBA fans understand is like scouting report of him is he’s most dangerous when he gives the ball up,” Caruso said. “Because even when he comes down, he gives the ball up. Now all of a sudden, they’re going to movement.
“Him and Draymond are so connected,” Caruso continued. “He knows exactly where to go, how to make the reads. And as a defender, I always think that people set illegal screens, and they get away with a couple.”
Caruso, who has made two All-Defensive teams, stated he doesn’t wait for Curry when the former MVP is dribbling the ball up the court. If you don’t get close, the Golden State Warriors superstar gets to pick up the pace, and that makes the two-man game with Draymond Green all the more dangerous.
Curry ran riot against the Thunder the first time he played against them in 2024-25. He put up 36 points (12-23 FG), five rebounds, seven assists, one steal, and one block to power the Warriors to a 127-116 win.
Caruso and the Thunder did manage to slow Curry down a bit in the second meeting. The superstar guard had just 21 points (6-15 FG), one rebound, four assists, and one steal, but the Warriors still won 116-109. A playoff series between these teams would have been quite interesting, but we weren’t lucky enough to witness it.
A matchup between the Thunder and the Los Angeles Lakers would have been fascinating as well. It would have pitted Caruso against his former teammate, LeBron James, and he spoke about what it’s like to guard the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
“He just tries to post me up because he’s 6’8,” 260 pounds, and that’s like 70 pounds heavier than I am,” Caruso stated. “I didn’t get to guard him when he was like freak LeBron. He’s in Year 20-something now, he has a more refined game, but still can go up and play above the rim.
“But I’ve noticed that with me, he goes to the post-game right away,” Caruso added. “He’s not moving laterally quick enough and downhill quick enough for how I like to guard because I’m going to climb up into the ball a little bit. But once he gets to the post, it’s a challenge.”
James averaged 23.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.0 steals per game against the Thunder in 2024-25 when Caruso played. He wasn’t quite at his dazzling best, but then again, not many were.
The Thunder finished the regular season with a dominant 68-14 record and went on to win the championship. It was Caruso’s second title, after winning one with the Lakers in 2020. The 31-year-old made it clear during this interview that he wasn’t interested in comparing the two titles and stated they’re both the best.
Caruso and the Thunder will now aim to repeat as champions, a feat last accomplished by Curry and the Warriors back in 2017 and 2018. They’re perhaps the team best equipped among all the champions since then to pull off that feat.
