Alex Caruso is honest about protecting the NBA legends that Nicola Jokic and the Joker remind him.
The Oklahoma City Thunder won a spot in the 2025 NBA Finals following an easy victory in the 4-1 Western Conference Finals with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Thunder has been barely challenged at WCF, but the same cannot be said for the Denver conference semi-final contest with the Nuggets.
Obviously, three times the NBA MVP Nikola Jokic played a key role in bringing the series to seven games. However, Jokic was not included in anyone other than Thunderguard Alex Caruso.
When it’s all said and done, there’s no doubt that Jokic will go down as one of the greatest NBA players of all time.
Many already believe that the Joker belongs to those conversations. But how does it feel to protect his caliber players?
Well, Thunder’s Caruso recently shared his experience playing against Jokic via the “Take The Take” podcast.
“He doesn’t talk. He has a bit of it, like you saw a clip of people talking about Tim Duncan, the silent trash speaker,” Caruso said.
San Antonio Spurs legend Tim Duncan is considered an incredible player as he helped the franchise win five NBA championships during his career.
Duncan was not caught up in an argument with his enemy and rarely allowed his game to talk, but he took a subtle blow with his unique garbage story.
Despite his small guard, Caruso took on the mission to protect Jokic for most of the 7-game series against the Nuggets.
You need to wonder if Caruso has heard Jokic deliver some subtle and shocking jabs to his enemies. However, Thunderstar denied the existence of such an incident.
“I’ve never heard him speak, at least for me. He’s the ‘serial killer face’ and posts you, go back to the jump hook, go back to the court, get steals, push transitions, jogging.
When Joker is on the court, he feels like he is in the zone and cannot reach him.