When the Oklahoma City Thunder traded away one of their recent lottery picks in Josh Giddey, whom many believed was going to be a part of the eventual OKC championship-winning squad, for Alex Caruso, it showed that they meant business after suffering a second-round exit in the 2024 NBA playoffs. This trade has now paid off in a huge way, as the Thunder have claimed their first NBA championship courtesy of a 103-91 win over the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals — with Caruso playing such an instrumental role in their breakthrough.
Caruso is a textbook example of what a winning player looks like. He doesn't care about the glitz and glamour; instead, he cares about doing whatever it takes to win. All postseason long, he's been one of the Thunder's most reliable weapons, guarding everyone from Ja Morant to Nikola Jokic to Anthony Edwards to Pascal Siakam to TJ McConnell, and he even popped up on offense. His two made triples in the first quarter of Game 7 should not be lost to history.
This Thunder title is the second championship of Caruso's career; he won his first with the Los Angeles Lakers back in the bubble in 2020. That championship, however, has long been invalidated by a huge portion of the NBA fanbase. But now that he's done it again, Caruso now knows that no one can take anything away from him.
“Now I got a real one! Now nobody can say anything!” Caruso said after the Thunder won it all, per Fred Katz of The Athletic.
Of course, Caruso is simply joking and he, along with the rest of the 2020 Lakers, knows that they earned that championship fair and square. But at the very least, fans can now put that joke to bed when it comes to Caruso.
Article Continues Below
Alex Caruso, the Thunder savior that was promised
Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) reacts after scoring a three point basket against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second quarter during game one of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center
Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
Caruso may have gotten his huge breakthrough with the Lakers, but it was with the Thunder organization where his career began to take shape. He was a member of the Mark Daigneault-coached Oklahoma City Blue (their G-League affiliate) back in the 2016-17 season, and who knew that he would eventually team back up with Daigneault to help lead the 2024-25 Thunder get over the hump?
The box score may never be flashy for Caruso, but he just does so many little things, like not relent an inch defensively, force wayward passes with his intimidation factor in the passing lanes, and be a stout figure on the boards, making him quite the perfect role player for the Thunder and well worth the hefty price he commanded in a trade.