As the calendar flips to September, we're officially in the quiet zone of the NBA year. Not much will go on until the final days of the month. All of the major offseason moves have already happened. Teams across the league enjoy some serenity before the marathon starts back up again.
The Oklahoma City Thunder will enter the 2026-27 season as co-title favorites — alongside the San Antonio Spurs. Even with their offseason departures, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren should keep them in the middle of the title hunt.
With nothing else happening, Thunder Wire will regularly conduct Thunder Mailbags over the remainder of the offseason. In this edition, a social media user asked in the DMs — could Alex Caruso's regular-season
role change with so many departures?
The Thunder added Caruso in a rare one-for-one player trade with the Chicago Bulls in June 2024. It was one of two offseason moves made that summer that signaled their readiness to take the next step as a serious title contender. Safe to say the win-now move paid off. OKC won the 2025 NBA championship in his first year there and almost won another this past year.
In those two playoff runs, Caruso has been one of OKC's five most important players. Especially when you compare his pedestrian regular-season numbers. He's averaged 6.6 points on 43.3% shooting, 2.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists in the regular season. He's shot 32.2% from 3. And in the playoffs, those numbers jump up to 9.9 points on 46.2% shooting, 2.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists. He's shot 42.7% from 3.
You always hear the cliché about playoff risers. Well, Caruso fits the textbook definition. The two-time NBA champion is one of the best role players of the decade. Already tasting individual accolades during his time in Chicago as a two-time All-Defensive Team member, he's sacrificed his regular-season production for ring chases in OKC.
But now that the Thunder are without Lu Dort, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins, can they still afford the same luxury of bubble-wrapping Caruso in the regular season to keep his tank near full by the time the NBA playoffs roll around? With Dort gone, OKC might have to rely on the 32-year-old to be one of its top perimeter defenders — alongside Cason Wallace. Suddenly, its three-headed POA monster of the last two years is down to two.
But I think you gotta stick with what's working. Even if it costs you a couple of wins in the regular season. Caruso has shown over the last two years that he's worth the caution. Even if he plays fewer than 60 games again, it'll be for a good cause as he plays his 100-MPH, chaotic nature on both ends of the floor in the postseason.
And at 32 years old, the Thunder must remain cognizant of Caruso's legs. He only has a couple of years left as a high-impact role player. The best way to ensure you get the top version of him when it truly counts in the NBA playoffs is to keep his workload at a minimum in the regular season.
At this point, the Thunder will be measured by NBA championships. Every year they fall short of that with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, it'll be viewed as a failure. That's a ridiculous standard to hold a team to, but that comes with the territory of all-time greatness. The rest of the league would absolutely love to be in that high-pressure situation.
And the best way to boost OKC's odds of a successful campaign is with a healthy and semi-fresh Caruso in the NBA playoffs. The Thunder might go through some growing pains for the first time in a few regular-season campaigns, but you have to trust your young back-of-the-bench to learn through them. Instead of relying on shortcuts like overplaying one of your veterans.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: OKC Thunder Mailbag: Will Alex Caruso's regular-season role change?
