Almost forgot .... the Eagle is MONEY on those difficult reverse layups at speed with his right hand. He's gotta be shooting 80% on those?
He constantly in the right place at the right time and he isn't afraid of the contact either. I think if he works on his jumper over the off season, I'd try and make him a Laker for life. The kind of player every championship team needs.
I will be pissed if he leaves but I would be happy for him if he gets the money he deserves. He's worth much more than his current contract. You are right. If Caruso was better at shooting the ball, he would be our third option every game.
I actually think Caruso will shoot better from 3 next year. He’s an extremely hard worker and he knows that’s an area he needs to improve.
I am Australian so I am going to pick a different player who is also very tough (some would say a dirty player). Matthew Dellavedova aka Delly
people underestimate caruso's ballhandling and general offensive skill (as opposed to, say, delly). he's also a better athlete and i think a bit bigger. lakers have his full bird rights when his deal's up, and his cap hold will be small, so I think he'll be here if we want him. he's not the type other teams throw big cash at, either.
It would be crazy if we got rid of Caruso. Kendrick Perkins even said he is the heart and soul of the Lakers. There are many guys around the league that look happy to just be famous, in the NBA, rich and get their numbers. They can brag to everybody they know that they are in the NBA and put up highlight reels. I don't think of Caruso is one of these guys at all. He will put himself in positions that might injure himself to win a possession for us, and in spite of a lack of natural ability to others, it appears his IQ is so good that he is plays ahead of others. He is not afraid of doing whatever it takes to win, and is always looking to improve. Caruso is a fan favourite, gets the absolute best out of himself and wants more, and doesn't seem satisfied to just be in the NBA or a cult hero for Lakers fans. I hope he is part of our organisation for a long time to come.
yeah, there's been a lot more of that going on with the lakers this year than the haters want to admit. and caruso's a huge part of it. still hard to believe he had trouble cracking the rotation earlier in the year. we could all see this stuff even then.
Bradley sitting out the Bubble seemed problematic at the time, but it opened the door for Caruso to really shine. We have a dominant interior defender in AD and a rising star perimeter defender in AC. The AD / AC lockdown is fun to watch.
yeah, though kcp has stepped up defensively ever since we started using him primarily on smaller (instead of larger) players. not sure there would have been room for AB unless we had the stones to bench green.
Having Bradley would have meant less Green <sigh> I agree the Heat would have been far more difficult challenge with Dragic around but not having Bradley was a huge hit to this team. The lineups with Bradely/Caruso/Lebron/Kuzma/AD would have been a holy terror on defense