With the NBA Finals tied up at 2-2 after a thrilling 111-104 comeback victory by the Oklahoma City Thunder over the Indiana Pacers in Game 4, one OKC player has emerged as the X factor for its championship ambitions, and it’s not the reigning MVP.
It is Alex Caruso.
The Thunder’s sixth man has had his hands all over this series and is the main reason why the Thunder are looking at an even series and not down 3-1.
Caruso finished Game 4 with 20 points, three rebounds and five steals all while shooting 77.8% from the floor, becoming the second player in NBA history to finish a Finals game with over 20-plus points, five-plus steals and a shooting percentage of 75%-plus, per StatMuse.
Caruso is a veteran defensive wing whose job is to come off the bench, make some energy plays, defend the other team’s best player and just be a general pest, but this series, he has turned himself into perhaps Oklahoma City’s most indispensable player.
Over the course of the regular season, Caruso put up a stat line of 7.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists per night, extremely respectable numbers for a defense-first guard who comes off the bench. However, in the NBA Finals, those numbers have grown to 14.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2.5 steals per game. He’s doubled his scoring output when his team has needed him the most.
Over the course of the regular season, Caruso never scored more than 20 points in a game. Now, he’s done it in two times in the Finals. It’s no surprise that the Thunder’s first two victories in the series corresponded with Caruso’s high scoring outputs in Games 2 and 4. In the Finals, he’s become OKC’s third leading scorer, outscoring the likes of Chet Holmgren and Luguentz Dort.
Caruso’s teammates are starting to notice it as well.
“He’s a winner,” Thunder superstar guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander told the media after Game 4. “To put it all into one word. He does whatever it takes on any given night, whether it’s making shots, whether it’s deflections, whether it’s a steal, whether it’s a block, whether it’s a rebound. He does whatever it takes every night…
“If you want to win basketball games, you have a guy like that on your team. We’re lucky to have him.”
Gilgeous-Alexander is right. While he’s the MVP of the league and taking on the responsibilities that come with that, Caruso is the reason why the Thunder are now just two wins away from an NBA championship.
