- Report: Lakers looking to upgrade from Patrick Beverley
- Phil Handy seemingly compares Rui Hachimura to Kawhi Leonard: ‘Reminds me of this guy I coached in Toronto’
- Report: Dennis Schroder stopped by police in Hollywood after leaving Lakers game
- Report: Lakers, Clippers, Jazz, Pistons and Hornets interested in Caris LeVert
- Chandler Parsons on LeBron James: ‘If they were winning more, he’s my MVP’
- Report: Lakers update injury statuses for Anthony Davis, Lonnie Walker and LeBron James vs. Spurs
- Report: Lakers showing interest in Mike Conley and Eric Gordon
- Report: Pistons would need ‘significant value’ to consider moving Lakers target Bojan Bogdanovic within next 2 weeks
- Russell Westbrook snaps on Lakers reporter after being asked if there was a ‘cross-up’ between him and Dennis Schroder
- Rob Pelinka hints that Lakers could make another trade before deadline
Report: Lakers were indeed interested in bringing back Alex Caruso despite previous reports
- Updated: August 16, 2021
Earlier this month, Alex Caruso, who was a key reserve guard for the Los Angeles Lakers and a fan favorite, left to join the Chicago Bulls.
According to reports, the team didn’t try to keep him in the fold once he received an offer from Chicago, but those rumors may not be true.
“In the wake of my report about the Lakers not countering Alex Caruso’s four-year, $37 million offer from Chicago in free agency, a source with knowledge of the negotiations strongly refuted the inference that he wasn’t wanted back,” wrote Sam Amick of The Athletic. “That doesn’t change the fact that Caruso’s side claimed to be confused about the communication element of the negotiation, but it seems the Lakers’ calculus was similar to the one Milwaukee faced with P.J. Tucker.”
Caruso was one of the Lakers’ best perimeter defenders, and this past season, he also became one of the team’s best 3-point shooters, at least in terms of accuracy.
After trading for superstar guard Russell Westbrook, the Lakers were seriously constrained under the NBA’s salary cap and were facing a huge luxury tax hit. The team apparently felt that it needed to save costs, which reportedly led to it letting Caruso go.
L.A. subsequently re-signed up-and-coming guard Talen Horton-Tucker, who was a restricted free agent, while adding other free agents such as Carmelo Anthony, Malik Monk and Kendrick Nunn.
Caruso will be able to provide a young Bulls team with veteran leadership and the experience he gained playing for a Lakers team that won the 2020 NBA championship.