Alex Caruso continues to fill every role he’s asked to.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have had a rough two-game stretch, as the team has now fallen to the Portland Trail Blazers in back-to-back games after a 118-108 loss on Wednesday night. OKC was hindered more than usual in this bout as both Ajay Mitchell and Jaylin Williams were out, along with the now-usual group of Cason Wallace, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren. 

With all these key players out, OKC once again had to turn to more players to carry a heavier portion of the game, and although it didn’t end with a win, one certain player continues to step up when it matters most. 

Alex Caruso got the nod from the beginning. The Thunder veteran was tossed into the starting lineup and did his best to try to lead the Thunder to a win. Caruso had 14 points, with fantastic shooting, as he went 67% from the field and 80% from beyond the arc. Caruso was all over the place as he grabbed seven rebounds, had two assists and had three steals on the night.. 

Caruso’s role in the past couple of seasons has turned into the guard being saved for the postseason mostly, and not used to his full potential during the regular season. However, his full potential has come out in certain situations where the Thunder have needed him most, and Wednesday night was another example of how he can step up when the team needs him most. 

The Thunder have seen this instance as more of a trend lately, with so many of OKC’s key players out due to injury, and you can expect that this trend will likely be the new normal as the season goes on. 

Caruso has never been the type of player who will score a crazy amount of points every night, but he can get the job done when no one else is stepping up. He was a main part of the Thunder’s postseason run last year, and is now going to be shifting those efforts to helping OKC get a good seeding for the playoffs this year. 

The Thunder will most likely still restrain him somewhat, as they are already a little thin on the depth chart. Caruso might not be front and center in every OKC game from here on out, but don’t be surprised if you start seeing him show out more than normal this season.