The Bulls secured their first win without All-Star center Nikola Vucevic last night against the Clippers. It was also Alex Caruso’s first start in a Bulls uniform. Although he may usually play at guard, Caruso played splitting time with DeRozan as an undersized power forward. Regardless, Tyron Lue tasked Caruso with guarding a red-hot Paul George. After the game, Bulls’ star DeMar DeRozan had some high praise for the fan-favorite Alex Caruso.
“Man, he’s one of the highest IQ players I’ve played with, since I’ve been in the game. And just to have somebody with that natural IQ on the court, he makes so many things easier for you. Offensively and defensively. He kind of anchors us, especially defensively, taking on the challenge of guarding PG. And you gotta feed off that.”
DeMar DeRozan
During the game, Caruso had a hard time getting it going, shooting, going 2/11 from the field. However, Caruso added valuable production with nine rebounds, five assists, three steals, and a block. Also, on a night where Paul George was his primary matchup, George shot 7/25 from the field. Of all the players on the Bulls, Caruso had the highest +/- in the game. Caruso has been a thief all season and is currently third in the league in steals per game, swiping 2.5 each night while only playing 28 minutes a game.
Return to Lakerland for Caruso
The Bulls west coast road trip is giving DeRozan and Alex Caruso both a chance at a homecoming. While DeRozan may be a California native, Caruso returns to where his career got off the ground.�After the Lakers refused to re-sign him, Caruso headed to the Windy City. While the Lakers have missed Caruso’s production, Anthony Davis had some jokes when asked about playing against Caruso tonight.�
“Who? I don’t know that guy. No. It is going to be fun playing against AC again. You know all the stuff he brought to our team, to win a championship and to our team last year. He was a big part of what we did here.”
Anthony Davis
The Bulls should provide a difficult matchup for the Lakers as they continue to play without LeBron James. With Russell Westbrook leading the league in turnovers, Caruso should have plenty of opportunities to get his already impressive steal numbers even higher. We’ll see if Caruso gives the Lakers more reasons to regret signing him tonight.
