Alex Michael Caruso (born February 28, 1994) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Texas A&M Aggies The Texas A&M Aggies are the students, graduates, and sports teams of Texas A&M University. The nickname "wikt:aggie#Etymology 2, Aggie" was once common at land-grant or "ag" (agriculture) schools in many states. The teams are also simply referr ...

, earning second-team all-

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

(SEC) honors as a senior in 2016. He won an

NBA championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

with the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

in 2020 and the Thunder in 2025, as well as earning two consecutive All-Defensive Team selections as a member of the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

in 2023 and 2024.

Early life

Caruso attended A&M Consolidated High School in his native

College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States, situated in East-Central Texas in the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is northwest of Houston and east-northeast of Austin, ...

, where he played basketball under head coaches Rusty Segler and Rick German. As a senior, he averaged 18 points and nine rebounds and was named TABC All-Regional, All-State as well as TABC All-Star and district MVP after leading his team to the postseason.

College career

After graduating from high school, Caruso joined the

. In 137 games over his four-year career, he averaged 8.0 points, 4.7 assists and 2.02 steals per game, finishing as the school's all-time leader in assists with 649 and steals with 276, surpassing David Edwards in those categories. As a senior he led the Aggies to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament; he also earned SEC All-Defensive Team and second-team All-SEC honors. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in

sports management Sport management is the field of business dealing with sports and recreation. Sports management involves any combination of skills that correspond with planning, organizing, directing, controlling, budgeting, leading, or evaluating of any organiza ...

Professional career

Oklahoma City Blue (2016–2017)

After going undrafted in the 2016 NBA draft, Caruso joined the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

for the 2016 NBA Summer League. On September 23, 2016, he signed with the

, but was later waived on October 17. On November 3, he was acquired by the

Oklahoma City Blue The Oklahoma City Blue are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City and are affiliated with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Blue compete in the NBA G League as members of the Western Conference. The Blue play their home games ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

Los Angeles Lakers (2017–2021)

Caruso joined the Lakers for the 2017 NBA Summer League. After several productive games, including one in which Caruso started in place of the injured Lonzo Ball and led the Lakers to a victory, he was signed to the Lakers' first

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless o ...

on July 13, 2017. He became the first player to go directly from the D-League (now G League) to the NBA via two-way contract. He also helped lead the Lakers win the 2017 NBA Summer League Championship in Las Vegas. Caruso made his NBA debut on October 19, 2017, against the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

. He played 12 minutes and recorded two points, two assists, and one rebound in a 108–92 loss. He had a career-high 15 points and seven rebounds in a victory in the final game of the season against the Clippers. Caruso signed another two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers after a successful showing in the 2018 NBA Summer League. On March 6, 2019, he recorded a season-high 15 points, six rebounds, and three assists in a 99–115 loss to the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

. He scored a new career-high 32 points in a 122–117 victory over the Clippers on April 5. He also became the only Laker that season other than

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. ( ; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and ...

to record a 30+ point, 10+ rebound, 5+ assist game. On April 7, 2019, with the Lakers missing James for the remaining six games, Caruso scored 18 points with a career-high 11 assists in a 113–109 home win over the Utah Jazz. On July 6, 2019, Caruso signed a two-year contract with the Lakers worth $5.5 million. He won his first NBA championship with them on October 11, 2020, when the Lakers defeated the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

in six games. Caruso started the clinching game of the NBA Finals. He became an

unrestricted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after the 2020–21 season.

Chicago Bulls (2021–2024)

On August 10, 2021, Caruso signed a four-year, $37 million contract with the

. Caruso chose to wear number 6 with the Bulls as his usual number 4 had been retired by the team in honor of

Jerry Sloan Gerald Eugene Sloan (March 28, 1942 – May 22, 2020) was an American professional basketball player and coach. He played 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) before beginning a 30-year coaching career, 23 of which were spent ...

. On January 21, 2022, during a 90–94 loss to the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, Caruso was fouled by opposing guard

Grayson Allen Grayson James Allen (born October 8, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played four years of college basketball at Duke University, where he helped Duke win a ...

. Allen was ejected from the game. The next day, the Bulls announced that Caruso had a fractured right wrist and would undergo surgery, keeping him out for at least 6-to-8 weeks. At the end of the 2023 season, Caruso was named for the first time to the

NBA All-Defensive First Team The NBA All-Defensive Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1968–69 NBA season to the best defensive players during the regular season. The All-Defensive Team is generally composed of ten players in tw ...

. On October 27, 2023, Caruso put up 13 points, 13 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and one block alongside a game-winning three-pointer in a 104–103 overtime win over the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

. He won the NBA Hustle Award in 2023–24.

Oklahoma City Thunder (2024–present)

On June 21, 2024, Caruso was traded to the

in exchange for Josh Giddey. The move reunited Caruso with Mark Daigneault, who coached him during his tenure with the Oklahoma City Blue. On December 22, Caruso and the Thunder agreed to a four–year, $81 million contract extension. In his first season with the team, Caruso earned his second-career NBA championship after winning the

2025 NBA Finals The 2025 NBA Finals is the ongoing championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 2024–25 NBA season, 2024–25 season and conclusion to 2025 NBA playoffs, the season's playoffs. The best-of-seven series is being played bet ...

in seven games over the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. He was a key player off the bench during the Finals, scoring 20 points in both Game 2 and Game 4 — both wins for the Thunder — before finishing the Finals averaging 10.1 points and 3.6 rebounds.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 37 , , 7 , , 15.2 , , .431 , , .302 , , .700 , , 1.8 , , 2.0 , , .6 , , .3 , , 3.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 25 , , 4 , , 21.2 , , .445 , , .480 , , .797 , , 2.7 , , 3.1 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , 9.2 , - , style="text-align:left; background:#afe6ba;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 64 , , 2 , , 18.4 , , .412 , , .333 , , .737 , , 1.9 , , 1.9 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 5.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 58 , , 6 , , 21.0 , , .436 , , .401 , , .645 , , 2.9 , , 2.8 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 6.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, 41 , , 18 , , 28.0 , , .398 , , .333 , , .795 , , 3.6 , , 4.0 , , 1.7 , , .4 , , 7.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 67 , , 36 , , 23.5 , , .455 , , .364 , , .808 , , 2.9 , , 2.9 , , 1.5 , , .7 , , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 71 , , 57 , , 28.7 , , .468 , , .408 , , .760 , , 3.8 , , 3.5 , , 1.7 , , 1.0 , , 10.1 , - , style="text-align:left; background:#afe6ba;", , style="text-align:left;",

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

, 54 , , 3 , , 19.3 , , .446 , , .353 , , .824 , , 2.9 , , 2.5 , , 1.6 , , .6 , , 7.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 417 , , 133 , , 22.3 , , .440 , , .376 , , .758 , , 2.9 , , 2.8 , , 1.3 , , .5 , , 6.9

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left; background:#afe6ba;",

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 21 , , 1 , , 24.3 , , .425 , , .279 , , .800 , , 2.3 , , 2.8 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , 6.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 6 , , 0 , , 20.2 , , .368 , , .294 , , 1.000 , , 1.3 , , .5 , , .2 , , .7 , , 5.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 4 , , 4 , , 28.3 , , .391 , , .389 , , – , , 2.8 , , 4.3 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , 6.3 , - , style="text-align:left; background:#afe6ba;",

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 23 , , 0 , , 24.4 , , .450 , , .411 , , .795 , , 2.7 , , 2.2 , , 2.0 , , .6 , , 9.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 54 , , 5 , , 24.2 , , .428 , , .355 , , .803 , , 2.4 , , 2.4 , , 1.4 , , .6 , , 7.6

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2012–13 , style="text-align:left;",

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

, , 33 , , 17 , , 24.7 , , .373 , , .265 , , .600 , , 3.2 , , 3.4 , , 1.8 , , .5 , , 5.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;",

, , 34 , , 33 , , 29.8 , , .460 , , .333 , , .685 , , 3.6 , , 5.0 , , 2.0 , , .8 , , 9.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, , 33 , , 33 , , 31.5 , , .463 , , .366 , , .685 , , 4.5 , , 5.5 , , 2.1 , , .2 , , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, , 37 , , 37 , , 28.8 , , .502 , , .368 , , .785 , , 3.6 , , 5.0 , , 2.1 , , .2 , , 8.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , , 137 , , 120 , , 28.7 , , .455 , , .340 , , .685 , , 3.7 , , 4.7 , , 2.0 , , .4 , , 8.0

Personal life

Caruso has two sisters. His father played four years at Creighton and was an associate athletic director at Texas A&M. Caruso grew up around the A&M program, spending many seasons as a ball boy for the Aggies. While studying at Texas A&M he majored in sports management. On June 22, 2021, Caruso was arrested at Easterwood Airport in

, for residual marijuana left on a grinder. On August 20, 2024, Caruso's engagement to former '' Big Brother'' contestant Haleigh Broucher was announced.

References

External links

*
Texas A&M Aggies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caruso, Alex 1994 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Texas Chicago Bulls players Los Angeles Lakers players Oklahoma City Blue players Oklahoma City Thunder players People from College Station, Texas Point guards South Bay Lakers players Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball players Undrafted NBA players United States men's national basketball team players