Throughout his time with the Los Angeles Lakers, Austin Reaves has been compared to Alex Caruso plenty of times.
Despite plenty of people seeing some similarities between the two, Reaves believes they are “totally different players.”
“Totally different players, but we’re guys that played on the Lakers, and we’re white,” said Reaves when asked by HoopsHype about the comparisons. “We don’t really look athletic. He’s athletic, but I’m not that athletic. I can see why people do it, but we’re two totally different players.”
During his time with the Lakers, Reaves has recorded 8.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game while knocking down 47.2 percent of his shots from the field and 33.6 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc.
As for Caruso, who spent four seasons with the Purple and Gold before joining the Chicago Bulls, he averaged 5.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 42.9 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from 3-point range with the Lakers.
The stats are pretty similar, so it’s easy to see why fans have compared the two. Caruso might have Reaves beat on the defensive end, but the University of Oklahoma product is no slouch on that side of the floor.
Last season, Caruso spoke a bit about Reaves, stating his belief that the 24-year-old was further along in his rookie season than Caruso was during his first year in the league.
“But he appears to be one of those good glue guys that winning teams need,” Caruso told HoopsHype. “I think he’s a lot farther along than I was during my first year in the league. I think we have the same mindset of getting better and working hard. Hopefully, he can stick around.”
The Lakers are expected to look at retaining Reaves, who is set to become a restricted free agent following the conclusion of this season.
They’ll have to shell out some cash in order to bring him back, as one Lakers insider recently said that Reaves is going to command more money than Caruso did in free agency.
Caruso left the Lakers to sign a four-year, $37 million deal with the Bulls in the summer of 2021. He’s been able to carve out an important role for the Bulls, averaging 6.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 26.2 minutes per game for them since the start of the 2021-22 season.
The Bulls and Lakers have yet to face off against each other this season. Their two scheduled matchups are set to take place in late March. Fans of Caruso and Reaves will surely be playing close attention to those games to see if the two players go head to head during any possession.
