2 weeks Ago By Dan Coombs, NBA Analysis Network
The Oklahoma City Thunder have answered every question possible during the regular season. It is the post-season where they will be defined. Mark Daigneault’s Oklahoma City Thunder earned their 64th victory of the season with a 119-103 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Top seed is secure and teams are vying to emerge as their biggest challengers. The Houston Rockets are the second seed , with the LA Lakers and Denver Nuggets following. Kendrick Perkins has suggested the LA Clippers could be the Thunder’s biggest threat , but ultimately he is passionate about OKC’s chances of winning the championship.
Kendrick Perkins points to Alex Caruso The constant knock against the Oklahoma City Thunder is their lack of experience. This cost the team last season, when they were defeated by the Dallas Mavericks in the conference semi-finals. But what if that was their experience? Former star Kendrick Perkins believes the defeat last season will work in their favor, and cites the inexperience in the squad when his Thunder team reached the finals in 2012.
He told First Take: “Lack of experience? We had a lack of experience when we went to the NBA Finals when I was at Oklahoma City. “Serge Ibaka, 20, Russell Westbrook 21, James Harden 20, we had lack of experience.” It’s notable Perkins chose not to mention the young Kevin Durant.
An oversight, perhaps, or a deliberate one considering the public clashes between the pair . Perkins believes an off-season addition last June could help, with the Thunder trading away Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso . He explained: “They do have one veteran leader in that locker room that has won a championship, his name is Alex Caruso.
“They went through the things they needed to go through last year. This team is locked in.” Caruso won the NBA title in 2020 on the LA Lakers, and his experience could be valuable when the playoffs kick in, to help guide the younger players past some of the more challenging moments.
Alex Caruso playing key role for OKC Caruso’s experience can benefit the OKC squad off the court as well as on it, but he is also a very useful player when he is out there. Former teammate Coby White recently admitted he was disappointed when the Chicago Bulls let him leave, showing the impact he made on him when he was in the Windy City. Caruso meanwhile is happy now in OKC, thrilled to have teamed up with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander , and playing a part for the team with the best record in basketball.
Even if Josh Giddey’s recent form has Patrick Beverley claiming the Bulls won the trade , the success OKC have had means they have a strong case too. Caruso has played 50 games this season, and while he has started only two, he is averaging 19.7 minutes per game and is ready whenever he is called upon.
He has enjoyed a lot of success in his career for a player who entered the league as an undrafted rookie with the Lakers in 2017, and while 2020 might have been his peak, winning the title with OKC outside the Bubble in 2025 could be even better. This article first appeared on NBA Analysis Network and was syndicated with permission..
