Los Angeles Lakers rumors: Teams inquiring about availability of Alex Caruso

Recent Los Angeles Lakers rumors involve Alex Caruso, who is reportedly garnering interest from other teams in trade talks.

With less than 24 hours until the NBA Trade Deadline, Los Angeles Lakers rumors have picked up in a big way. While a lot of the talk has surrounded Kyle Kuzma and who the Lakers are targeting, there are teams inquiring about players on their team as well.

Kuzma is someone that other teams like, but it sounds like Alex Caruso is another player that teams around the NBA would like to have on their roster.

According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, multiple teams have inquired about the availability of Caruso.

Caruso has quickly become a cult favorite in Los Angeles. After playing on two-way deals, splitting his time between the Los Angeles Lakers and South Bay Lakers in the G League, Caruso earned a contract with the NBA team.

While fans still love Caruso, he has done more than enough to earn his spot in the rotation. While his statistics don’t jump off the page, and he isn’t shooting the ball as well as he showcased he could last season, he brings a lot to the table.

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For example, he is the best defender on the team according to defensive rating on NBA.com. Only seven players who have appeared in at least 10 games and average 15 minutes per game have a better defensive rating than Caruso. He does things that don’t pop up in a box score that impact the team in a positive manner.

Other teams inquiring about Caruso is not surprising. It can be argued that Caruso is being underutilized by Frank Vogel and his staff as essentially the third point guard. While Rajon Rondo has the backing of the coaching staff, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Caruso is actually the player that seemingly meshes best with the team’s superstars.

Trading Caruso away would be a short-sighted move for the Lakers. The team would immediately regret moving him as he is the quintessential glue guy. He doesn’t need the ball in his hands to make an impact, which is the type of player you need to find success in the postseason.

Perimeter defenders are difficult to come by. Given his contract, as Caruso signed a two-year, $5.5 million deal as a free agent this past summer, the team will find it difficult to receive equal value in return.

Caruso is reportedly who the Detroit Pistons asked for in return for Derrick Rose, and the Lakers declined. It was a smart decision to turn down that offer. For every other team that comes calling with similar offers, the answer should be no as well.