OKLAHOMA CITY —In the blink of an eye, Alex Caruso went from pouncing on a loose ball while trying to keep his balance to charging toward the rim, directly in the path of Victor Wembanyama, the oxygen and nitrogen in his 6-5 frame replaced with audacity and gall. 

The internal configuration of Caruso’s insanity — and the mental complex of taking on the most menacing man in basketball — portrayed an irrational confidence in a daunting task not seen since the Enron whistleblower. In the same game, a number of Caruso’s teammates had attempted a similar route but quickly found the nearest exit on Interstate Wembanyama, opting for any detour they could find. 

But Caruso’s self-belief, the swag of a sixth grader with a fresh cut on the first day of school, stretches much farther than his wingspan. On the next possession, Caruso pump-faked like he was darting across the baseline, only to relocate to the corner and drain a triple with Wembanyama in the vicinity. The next play, he chased the Frenchman from the top of the key to the restricted area, latching onto him like a piece of gum, and leaped in the air to deny an entry pass made for a giant. Less than a minute later, Caruso was forced to confront his French fears again, attacking Wembanyama in space before quickly launching a nifty stepback over his outstretched arms. The more ominous or intimidating the challenge looks, the more Caruso’s impact expands. 

“It’s how he approaches everything,” head coach Mark Daigneault said following the Thunder’s 122-113 win. “He’s got an unbelievable focus and is a monster competitor. It seems like the bigger the moment, the bigger the game, the more he wants to compete in it. And he’ll fail and not blink, and he’ll be aggressive in the next possession, next game and he was huge again tonight. His minutes were massive for us.”

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Caruso’s presence as a playoff riser remains an integral component of Oklahoma City’s championship mettle — and a reminder that skill comes in various shapes and sizes. The veteran guard finished with 17 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds on a tidy 5-for-7 shooting in Game 2, with all of his made field goals coming with Wembanyama on the floor. The importance of that lies in the Spurs’ defensive scheme, the Thunder’s spacing system and the all-encompassing factor that the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year necessitates.

His ability to play larger than his position affords Daigneault the luxury of inserting more guards within the course of the game to add more speed and shooting with the likes of Ajay Mitchell and Jared McCain. His ability to move without the ball — routinely in Wembanyama’s orbit — and knock down perimeter shots offers San Antonio a reminder of the pitfalls of an aggressive scheme designed to slow down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and funnel action toward the middle, Wemby’s opportunity costs. When the Spurs switched to a zone in the second half, Caruso was placed in the blind spots, directing traffic and rendering Wembanyama’s rim protection and deterrence useless. And at the other end, Caruso remained a thorn in his side, barking out coverages and poking his nose in business it shouldn’t be in, with Wembanyama finishing with 21 points on 16 shots, but converting just four of ten attempts with Caruso on the floor. Caruso finished Wednesday evening with a +18, larger than any Thunder starter and more than anyone at the opposite bench. 

“It’s been huge,” Lu Dort said of Caruso’s impact to Yahoo Sports. “His leadership is over the roof, honestly, especially on the [defensive] end of the floor. He communicates a lot. He’s really smart as a player and watches a lot of basketball as well. So he knows a lot of plays and the tricks we need to get stops defensively. Able to read the game well and he’s been amazing.”

Caruso’s positive input also reflects on a much larger theme, Oklahoma City’s depth, which completely overwhelmed San Antonio in Game 2. Gilgeous-Alexander’s 30-point, nine-assist evening will dominate headlines, but the Thunder’s bench combined for 57 points, with Jaylin Williams, Cason Wallace, Caruso and McCain making up 12 of the Thunder’s 13 made 3s. Daigneault has routinely praised the ability of the second unit to remain in games and intertwine with the starters, all while sill remaining viable at both ends of the floor. His most-used lineups, SGA/Mitchell/McCain/Caruso/Chet Holmgren outscored the Spurs by five points, Caruso, Wallace, McCain were part of the unit that blitzed the Spurs by 14 points in less than three minutes, and every positive-performing five-man pairing had multiple second unit options in it. 

As Caruso has aged, his understanding of the game has improved and as such, his contributions. It’s no surprise than Oklahoma City’s net rating improved by 11.1 points per 100 possessions while he was on the floor, an efficiency jump in the 96th percentile. The Thunder outscored opponents by nearly 400 points in Caruso’s regular-season minutes, and are a whopping plus-88 in 201 playoff minutes prior to Game 2. (His impact as an agent of chaos on Wednesday night was superb, a key component in Stephon Castle coughing up the ball nine times and 21 total Spurs turnovers, resulting in 27 Thunder points. It’s also no surprise that the Thunder’s three most impactful passing lane performers all come off the bench.)

“It’s that time of the year,” Caruso said. “If you’re not fearless, you’re probably gonna lose and go home. You gotta lay it all on the line if you wanna win — if you want to win big, at least. I want to win the last game of the season, so for me it’s pretty easy to get myself going and lock into that mentality. And just trying to encourage these guys; even though we won a championship last year, a lot of these guys are still young. [San Antonio] is a worthy opponent and you have to make sure you’re not riding the highs and lows and staying consistent.”

Over the coming days, Oklahoma City’s depth will be tested. Star wing Jalen Williams reaggravated his left hamstring and missed the majority of the game, a situation that will be monitored. In the event that Williams is forced to miss a game or multiple, expect the Thunder to lean on Caruso even more, whether that’s by being inserted to the starting lineup or seeing a huge minutes spike. But as he’s shown over the course of his time in Loud City, there’s no requirement too large for the man from College Station to handle. Not even Wembanyama.