Paul Pierce heaps huge praise on the Oklahoma City Thunder star for holding the team together.
The Oklahoma City Thunder were head and shoulders better than the rest of the Western Conference during the 2024-25 regular season.
It was evident from their 68-14 record to clinch the top seed in the conference. The majority of credit was given to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as he is likely going to win the NBA MVP award.
The Thunder have translated that form into the postseason as they are just one win away from advancing to the conference finals. However, the team wouldn’t have managed that without a key veteran, and it’s not Shai.
Photo by Joshua Gateley/Getty ImagesPaul Pierce on Alex Caruso
When the OKC Thunder traded for Alex Caruso in exchange for Josh Giddey, many were skeptical of the decision. In hindsight, it has only made the Thunder stronger.
NBA legend Paul Pierce recognized what Caruso has done for the Thunder and showered him with praise via the SPEAK podcast on YouTube.
“Alex Caruso, oh my goodness, he’s the glue. To me, he is the stone, cold gorilla glue that’s holding them together. He knocks their open threes, hustle plays, guard whoever [is] out there every time,” Pierce said.
He added: “I promise you, every time I watch the game when they play, he get an open shot, I say ‘That’s going in’ every time. It’s gotten to the point where Alex Caruso, I feel like it’s gonna make.”
Pierce’s observations are spot on as Caruso has been shooting 42.5% from the three-point line on 4.4 attempts per game.
Pierce compares Caruso to Klay Thompson
Despite essentially being out of his prime, Klay Thompson will always be viewed as one of the best three-point shooters of all time.
With that said, it speaks volumes that Pierce compared Caruso’s three-point shooting ability to Klay’s.
“You look like Klay Thompson out there every time you shoot. And you need those type of guys, somebody you can kind of depend on,” the Boston Celtics legend continued.
“He’s a guy that they say, ‘Hey, off our bench, we can depend on him every night to get us between 13 and 15 points,’” Pierce concluded.
Caruso isn’t a superstar by any means, but his consistency has helped the Thunder hold a 3-2 lead over the Nuggets.
So far, Caruso has finished three out of five games in double-digit scoring, and OKC has a 2-1 record in those matchups.