It’s been a while since we’ve gotten to talk about some real on-court basketball but during a conversation last night on Instagram Live, Los Angeles Lakers forward Jared Dudley and his teammate Alex Caruso gave us just that for a few moments. Dudley has been with the Lakers all season and has played sparingly, but he’s been a constant force in the Lakers locker room, as he usually is wherever he is as a veteran who has no trouble saying what’s on his mind. But by not playing a lot he has the opportunity to see things up close, like the strong play of Caruso when next to LeBron James.
Dudley asked Caruso about the numbers that show Caruso and LeBron as one of the best on-court two-man lineups in the NBA, and the best among those who have played at least 40 games at +20.8 over 54 games this season. Caruso admits that sometimes, it can be as simple as LeBron going on a 10-0 scoring run, but he also explained why he believes he plays well with LeBron.
Caruso speaks on him and LeBron having the best net rating of any two-man combo in the NBA. pic.twitter.com/TMC7umc0n8
— pickuphoop (@pickuphoop) May 9, 2020
Understanding defensive principles, spacing, and cuts are all very important factors in playing with LeBron James. It requires playing instinctually and with less structure than a typical role, but that’s the exact type of role in which Caruso has thrived for the Lakers this season. So it should be no shock that LeBron’s play goes up to another level when Caruso is on the court.
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