Alex Caruso Breaks Down How He Guards Kyrie, Luka, & SGA | Inside the NBA

Ernie’s “son” Alex Caruso joins Inside the NBA in Studio J to talk NBA Playoffs, how he guards Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kyrie Irving pick and rolls, and more.

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colleagues some compared my hairline to yours um how long does it take to do your hair in the morning it takes me 36 seconds yeah 35 for me you know I’m a little younger so I get it done a little sooner yeah Underdog put that on the gift yes indeed that oh like father like son give me that I that people are going to really believe that’s your son no dog put that on no they’re not going to believe that although the the resemblance is striking and my son yeah you got so good to see you my son you look wonderful you look well fed you look great meet my friends Charles and Draymond and Shaquille good to see you man thanks for being here I know you’re doing some NBA TV you’re doing some X for us and uhum all over the place great to see you and also we should point out hustle Award winner for 2020 four in the NBA really is Alex Caruso point out he just told me he’s a five handicap too I love it so he beat you he’s better than me he’s better than me that’s most he says he he just works out and plays golf every day during the summer hey look uh later tonight we’ve got Oklahoma City and Dallas and we got some Talent you got the sgaa you got Kyrie you got Luca in that one of the best defenders in the league right here uh if you’re in that series you got your hands full yeah exactly that’s exactly what I was going to say I mean that’s that’s with two MVP candidates and then you know some compliments that could be up there in their best day too so like you said it’s your hands full you got to go out there and try and make life difficult you know if you go out there and you don’t play physical and you let them get to their spots it’s going to be a long night the between Kyrie and I just do SGA which one of those guys is the most difficult to guard well that’s that’s a loaded question yeah there’s no right answer to that question uh I I might give I might give uh I might give Kyrie the nod for just his intelligence you know like he understands how to attack I think a little bit more yeah you know he’s he’s knows how to get the spots and use use you know use the leverage of the defender against him but like I said there’s you know it’s not an it’s not an easy night with either one of those two it’s a fact well first of all I I I I the first time like we’ve been like this I didn’t realize you were that tall so you probably got SGA Luca and Kyrie jannis I got yeah Yannis because short you on your guys no but I’m just saying because of his size I thought he was more 62 but he’s more 65 so closer to 6’5 cuz look he you’re you got dropped in him but I’m saying if you have a guy like Kyrie let you have we have the defensive player of the year here we got another defense last year defense and and we’ll be Jack and I running the pick and roll and I’m Kyrie we we going we could go go Kyrie we can go guard you’re guarding me I’m Kyrie now pick and roll I’m guarding Shaq and and pick and roll we’re ignoring him you’re ignoring him on the pick and Ro he coming to set the screen yes he not going to roll fast enough we talking about the screen big oh 2023 Shaq or Shaq Shaq Shack any Shaq all right but the co no what’s the first thing that you’re going to do when you see the picking coming with Kyrie first thing I need I need Dre to talk to me right cuz I’m up here right now I’m guarding one-on-one I think Kyrie prefers I think he prefers his right at the end of the day he can go both ways obviously he’s great prefers or his right so so screen’s coming I need Dre to talk to me so we if we bring in a middle yeah we’ll say we’ll say we’re sending them left okay we’re sending him left so what’s the first thing you do first thing I got to do as soon as I hear the call from Dr I got to get into the ball right I got to close the gap and close the distance because if not and I take this step here oh I’m trying to get shoulder to yeah yes yes sir no you’re going left right cross you’re you’re rejecting me right and now we’re both beat but let’s say I get into the ball like Stu Curry no that’s that’s that’s live so just let so we got the double we won we hit it we hit now I get the pass the sh we’re living with that with living with that yeah that’s what you’re trying to do give I’ll meet you up top if you go anywhere near here Draymond wake up you’re dreaming I’ll meet you up top Draymond wake up come on Draymond you having a bad dream wake up the now Okay so we get up but SGA is a little bit different cuz they don’t run as many ball screens I see they run more they run more of the slip screen go screen AC right so he’s faking the screen so now what’s the difference when you go to him so he’s coming over and he’s not really setting it and then all of a sudden he’s out yeah I think the important thing Dre talks to me again right let’s me know square or or slip whatever the coverage is for us right and you’re still getting I’m playing one-on-one right like this whole time I’m not thinking about a screen at all so you’re like we’re in the park we’re in the park I’m playing one-onone I know you know if he’s coming up left obviously we can’t get rejected right you get rejected anytime you’re dead and then once he slips out it’s oneon-one and I got to know at that time I got to know Tendencies right I got to know I got to know Shay’s getting downhill left probably big shoulder step back if he’s going right big shoulder pivot back and lastly Luca yeah L cuz ain’t no picks in Luka Luka don’t need picks he’s letting him go down and now you’re on the island with LCA so what’s your first Luka’s playing he’s playing with you here first thing I’m going to pick you up back there okay I’m not going to let you just walk up to the three-point line right you up to the three-point line you get to your spots with barbecue chicken right that’s the terminology so you Pi you up like L you’ll see ludor do it right he’ll pick up full court you got to turn him turn him and then once we get here same thing make him play quick CU if you let him dance and you let him you let him dance dance dance dance he’s going to hit that left hand oh you might get one of those in you you might get one of those in you you might get one of those in you that’s what I’m talking about lay in you you know what I’m saying for camera we ain’t got time me keep shooting all day you know what I’m saying Chuck you might get one of those in if you let LCA do that you like that Chu that was nice so interestingly enough though if I’m guarding Kyrie as the big that’s the sh I got kyri as the B I’m helping I’m helping early on Kyrie right so when we played Boston in the finals a couple years ago we had a thing you help late on Jason Tatum because he could make the pass so I’m not helping on Jason Tatum till he get to the rim with Jaylen Brown he couldn’t make the pass so you step up and help early with Kyrie you can’t let him see the pass or see the basket so I’m overh helping off my guy early starts to go to make his move he going to see a second Defender just stand because typically you’re guarding a nons scorer it could be a score anybody but when Kyrie got the ball he the score like I can’t worry about the score that I’m on when he got the ball so I think it’s a different thing with Kyrie my question is this to both of you guys Dam what is St what is the two stops dude you going to make one defensive give me the defensive mindset give me have you have you always been a good defender or did you become a good Defender question to both of you guys for for me no I think I had to grow into it um one that was that was how I got my my minutes when I started in the league I remember playing against Dre where I was on the bench and he’s talking to me on the bench telling me to get in and do something and then a couple years later now I’m I I listened to him when I got out there and I did something we’re not supposed to that’s on no we on cable we on honestly it’s it’s but so for me talking chips America chips you know I had to compete with myself to get minutes and then from there I started realizing like oh okay I I can play with this guy I can play with that guy and then from there it’s just taking on the challenge all right when you’re guarding that guy like no matter what you do he’s going to get his 30 40 you rather him shoot the jumper or you rather him get to the hole and you rather have your help come like well it depends depends how your team’s built too right I played in Chicago last couple years we didn’t have the best Rim protection like I did when I was in LA in La I sent it to I sent it to ad ad’s you know he’s whooping stuff stuff that’s not a that’s not a shot that’s not a shot that’s not a shot just caught a stke my guy your guy still tell yourself he’s not ad I’m not ad is not a I think it depends I think it depends how the team’s constructed a little bit so for me yeah I think the last couple years I’m trying to force a jump shot somewhere you know 15 to 20 ft contested jumpers contested jumpers 15 to 20 ft take my hat off he makes it we’ll go down the court but I mean like you said the guys are going to get their numbers you can’t let the other guys get more than their numbers and you can’t let that guy get get 40 50 we talked about this in the first segment we’ll revisit it with you if you’re the Cleveland Cavaliers and you’re missing the pieces they are missing tonight in an elimination game on the road in Boston what’s going on in that locker room right now some team prayer uh no they they having your you got having your family pack up the stuff for your vacation to starts tomorrow shipping their cars out you got to hope for you got to hope for the best Shing their car the teams had all year come on KY one two three bring it in bring it in bring it in one two three whatever it’s not looking good it’s not looking chance Mak sense him how do you feel how do you feel about Kobe not being the most improved player this year yeah that was tough I feel like I honestly feel like if we had a little more team success we could have had you know obviously I got the hustle I think dear could have won clutch clutch uhuh Steph Curry won clutch he could have I said he could have he was a finar my guy but Steph Curry no he could have cuz Steph Curry was winning I know but he was fin award relax yourself just say wait yall will to play don’t you do this long time year for you to do this see I was being a good teammate when we did the All-Star game together I wish you luck you did then you crushed us what you mean I said good luck in the play in the play yall in damn we did I know that’s I know that’s new North Carolina yeah I was just checking I was just checking yeah yeah he was he was close he was very close he had a great year this year great year yeah he’s going to keep getting better too who are you feeling like uh is going to have the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of all this man that’s a tough one I I think I think it’s going to be Denver Boston I I don’t think there’s too much conversation around that in my head as far as the two best teams from each conference I want to say Boston I really do but I just don’t I don’t have at the end of the day I don’t I don’t know if they can get it done and you know you’ve seen the response Denver’s had over the last three games that’s Championship medal you know they they’ve been there they had they had their backs against the wall and they said all right this is what we’re built this is what we’re made of that that gets my my vote who who have you drawn the assignment on against Denver usually Jamal Jamal Murray yeah I can’t guard I mean nobody can guard joic but I disagree I disagree I can guard him I don’t know if they can I can guard him better I can guard him put it like this I can guard don’t do that don’t do that better than he’s being guarded I knew you were going to do it I I can it’s been proven that that I agree with been Pro I a saying I can shut him down iard him better than that I want to thank my son for for coming into the I need some uh I need some some money is that you ride home from college and you get some pops give me that money be home by 11 yeah lights come on lot of ons in there drive slow should that jumper again right now come on man yeah it was it was long awaited finally happening here inside Studio J Kenny hey give it to him Kenny can you hit one more uh I only hit with the lights so I pass some 15 seconds got pass baby chck barue chicken barbecue chicken barbecue chicken barbecue chicken come on man my Jack too tight my jacket too tight