The recent comments of Los Angeles Lakers guard Alex Caruso about the realities of making it in the NBA got a strong endorsement by Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal.
Caruso’s analogy was used to explain how he was able to go from being an undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M University to starting in the NBA Finals and being an NBA champion.
After Caruso had put up modest numbers at Texas A&M, he wasn’t selected in the 2016 NBA Draft and signed a free agent deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder. After being released during that year’s training camp, he then signed a two-way deal with the Lakers in July 2017.
Over the next two seasons, Caruso played in a combined 62 games with the Lakers before seeing action in 64 regular season games during the interrupted 2019-20 campaign.
During the 2020 postseason, Caruso’s contributions in the Lakers backcourt became more important due to the absence of Avery Bradley and an injury suffered by Rajon Rondo.
Caruso started Game 6 of the Finals, and by the time the game had ended, he and the Lakers were celebrating the franchise’s first title in a decade.
Beal has yet to experience the thrill of winning an NBA championship, though he’s been the subject of trade rumors that could send him to a title contender. Given his thoughts about Caruso’s comments, it’s clear that he understands the mindset it takes to succeed in the NBA.
