Ya know it was Kuz and AC ..... not BI and Lonzo that we won the Summer League championship game with 3 years ago.
As soon as Caruso entered the game in the 4th, he helped cause a Grizzlies turnover. Then the next play on offense was this He just plays smart, and he plays hard. No, he’s not a great shooter or creator, but he does other things that Rondo doesn’t do. He moves and helps keep the space in the paint going, where Rondo either dribbled the ball while his defender sags off and clogs it, or he stands around (though being fair he does set screens too, it’s just with him he rolls off and calls for the ball usually). Caruso > Rondo, and Caruso better not be the one that loses time when Morris joins us and Kuz slides to the 3, it needs to be Rondo, while Caruso stays out there with KCP, Kuz, Morris, and Dwight.
A lot of people didn't believe us last offseason when you and I were saying that. Caruso is the real deal. He's our better, smarter, less dirty Dellavedova.
Far more athletic. Delly was great and his dirty rep was not deserved: he actually dove for loose balls and people got pissed about that. The thing that Caruso has though is that he's an above average NBA athlete. Delly got by on hustle and smarts only. I do think an interesting comparison is Lonzo vs Caruso. I always liked Lonzo but I don't think that there that far off from each other. Caruso is already 25 so he's already hitting his prime but if the only thing that he improves is his shooting, he's a pretty damn good player. I think Lonzo has a bit more strength/size to throw against guys like Westbrook which give him a slight edge but it's not much
The Lonzo comparison is close in terms of what they can both do. Caruso doesn't shoot often so let's say they are about even. I feel the passing of Lonzo is slightly overrated. He does a better job of moving the ball but people act like Lonzo was a Steve Nash type of passer. Lonzo is great at finding mismatches and making those passes but Caruso has shown a very high ability of making the correct passes. It's just he doesn't have the ball as often to display it. Rebounding, I'd say equally as good. Defensively, equally as good. From what I've seen, though, Caruso has done a better job guarding bigger players. I've seen Caruso guard some forwards quite well. He's just built stronger than Lonzo. The difference to me is their health. Caruso can take a beating, get right back up straight to work the next play and you just have confidence that he can stay on the court. Lonzo has been healthy this season but it's just a matter of time before an ankle injury sidelines him for a few weeks. I do wish we had kept Lonzo. Imagine Caruso+Ball clamping up the opposing backcourt instead of Rondo. I am just glad Caruso has stepped up and we were able to snag him for $2.5 million each season for two seasons.. On another note, people talk about Kuzma's value based on what he gets paid. It's time we talk about Caruso's value... He is our best young player - not Kuzma.
Great block on Ball...two nice makes at the cup. Did struggle a bit when he had on ball pressure from Holiday and Ball. Gave team a spark subbing for Rondo who had the team floundering. Drew a clear offensive foul from Ball and did not get it.
Frank Vogel praises Caruso but the next game, same old nonsense of playing Rondo 20+ minutes and then Caruso gets 15 minutes but does a +/- 20 game. I don't know what Vogel is expecting from Rondo anymore but Caruso is simply a superior player. The only thing Rondo does better than him at this point is passing but the energy Caruso brings is infectious. Rondo's lack of energy just kills everyone's buzz. Maybe Playoffs Rondo returns in the Playoffs but I think Caruso has earned his minutes and then some.
