Without a doubt one of the most crucial and popular role players during LeBron James’ time with the Los Angeles Lakers was Alex Caruso. An undrafted guard, Caruso was the first two-way player in franchise history and eventually parlayed that into a standard contract, becoming one of the most vital players during the Lakers’ run to the 2020 NBA Championship.
Perhaps most importantly was that Caruso clearly had the complete trust of James, which isn’t something everyone earned. And when thinking back on his time with the Lakers, Caruso reflected on when he knew he had earned that trust, via Barstool Sports:
“Honestly it’s probably earlier than maybe even he realized or people realized. It was when I was on two-way my last year in L.A., his first year. It was the year before the AD trade so I was playing with him and a couple other two-ways and guys middle, end of the bench cuz I don’t think we were making the playoffs and this was before play-in.
“We’re playing at Toronto and I’m running a pick-and-roll with him on the side and this is when I figured out that ohh when I’m playing with him people are gonna pay attention to him and I can just go shoot layups. And I just go straight downhill and shoot the layup and-1. And he comes over to me and he’s like talking very intently and directly and it was the first time within a game where it was just like we’re on the same team playing basketball.
“It’s not like ohh that’s LeBron, I’m Alex and we’re just happy to be here, it was like he’s talking to me like a teammate like we gotta figure out how to try and win this game, like peers. So that was probably the first time where I looking back on it where I was just like ok this guy’s competitive, that’s what I do, this is gonna be a good thing.”
And once that trust was gained, it only made Caruso better as it allowed him to play more freely and not worry about anything else:
“I think it freed me up just to know that the stuff I see on the court, he’s also seeing. Obviously at another level to that, but my instincts kicked in. Like I was able to play free and play off my instincts and then from there learn what to do, what not to do. What I can get away with, how I can be useful when playing with him and from there I’m a learner so the more opportunity, the more reps I get, I use that, store it up here and then just take it to the next game.”
Caruso was an absolute beloved member of the Lakers and the same has happened since he signed with the Chicago Bulls in 2021. He is one of the best perimeter defenders in the NBA today while also being a solid creator offensively.
Players like Caruso are hard to find in this day and age of the NBA, but he was greatly valued during his time with the Lakers and LeBron clearly had faith in him throughout his time in Los Angeles.
Lakers’ LeBron James reveals when Austin Reaves gained his trust
Since Alex Caruso left in free agency another undrafted, scrappy guard has played a big role for the Lakers over the past couple seasons in Austin Reaves. And like Caruso, Reaves was also able to gain LeBron James’ trust.
LeBron recently discussed this, noting that Game 1 of the Lakers’ first round playoff series against the Memphis Grizzlies is when he truly had full trust in Reaves. LeBron also added that he loves seeing his teammates be successful and he knew if he could instill that confidence in Reaves in that moment, it would greatly benefit the Lakers as a team, as well as Reaves moving forward in his career.
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