The Los Angeles Lakers said goodbye to fan-favorite guard Alex Carso this offseason but it wasn’t because they didn’t want him back.
Caruso signed with the Chicago Bulls this offseason on a four-year, $37 million contract this offseason. The Lakers held Caruso’s full bird rights, meaning they could have signed him for any amount without worrying about the salary cap.
It was reported by Sam Amick of The Athletic that the Lakers did not counter the Bulls offer, leading him to infer that LA was not interested in having him back. A source more recently told Amick that was not the case.
In the wake of my report about the Lakers not countering Alex Caruso’s four-year, $37 million offer from Chicago in free agency, a source with knowledge of the negotiations strongly refuted the inference that he wasn’t wanted back. That doesn’t change the fact that Caruso’s side claimed to be confused about the communication element of the negotiation, but it seems the Lakers’ calculus was similar to the one Milwaukee faced with P.J. Tucker.
Caruso Earned Respect of Laker Teammates
GettyLeBron James with Alex Caruso.
While the numbers don’t necessarily show it, Caruso played a key role off the bench for the Lakers, averaging 6.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists. He garnering NBA All-Defensive Team votes with the Lakers finishing with the league’s top-ranked defense.
Caruso battled to earn his latest deal, going undrafted, making a name for himself in the G-League and then carving out a role with the Lakers. Caruso became a viral sensation while in LA, but also became a quality NBA player, even gaining the respect of LeBron James.
“A.C. is whatever we need,” James told reporters in January. “A.C. is kind of a Swiss Army knife, to be honest. If you need scissors, a wine opener, fingernail clipper, you get a knife, he’s all that in one. He can do it all, he just helps our ballclub in so many ways.”
Caruso Ready to Bring Energy to Bulls
Caruso now has a new opportunity for himself in Chicago, fitting into a guard rotation that includes Zach LaVine, Coby White and his former Lakers teammate, Lonzo Ball.
“Caring every possession, having that mindset of wanting to get a stop, having a pride that you don’t want your guy to score and you’re trying to win games. That’s where it starts,” Caruso told reporters during his introductory press conference in Chicago. “That’s (defense) something that I think I can provide day in, day out, game in, game out. Something you can control is your effort and your energy and playing defense. And for me that’s always been a catalyst for my game, whether it’s been getting a run through steal and getting a dunk on the other end or taking a charge or getting a deflection. It provides energy to the team, provides energy for the game and usually is positive.”
That’s not to say that Caruso won’t miss his time with the Lakers, specifically James, who he gained a nice chemistry with.
“Playing with LeBron, that’s something I’ll never take for granted,” Caruso said. “How easy he makes the game for his teammates. How much fun it was for me. I’m going to miss throwing him lobs. You can throw it up anywhere and he’ll go dunk it. So hopefully me and Zach can get on that same page and I’ll get some to him.”
READ NEXT: Browns Star Baker Mayfield Calls Out Report on Bears QB situation
No comments:
Post a Comment