Alex Caruso traded to the OKC Thunder for Josh Giddey: How does this affect fantasy?
On Thursday afternoon, Alex Caruso was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Josh Giddey and this was the first big trade of the offseason. In this article, we will be breaking down how both Alex Caruso and Josh Giddey will affect fantasy this year.
Last season, Alex Caruso averaged 10.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game. He did this while shooting a 46.8 FG%, 40.8 FG3%, 76 FT%, and 61.3 TS%. So, Caruso was an average scorer with above average efficiency and good three point shooting. But, Caruso's best skill was his defense, as he had 2.7 stocks per game and earned All-Defensive Second Team honors. Also he led the league in steals percentage with a 2.9%. With this new Oklahoma City Thunder team, Caruso could be scary good on defense along the best defense in the league now, with Lu Dort, Chet Holmgren, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Giddey on the other hand, definitely needed a fresh start in Chicago. This past season, Giddey averaged 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists on 48/34/81 shooting splits. It looks to be that Giddey is just an overall better offensive player than Alex Caruso. But, Caruso's strength is also Giddey's weakness. Meaning, The Thunder couldn't even play Giddey in the playoffs because of how much of a liability he was on defense, while Caruso is a All-Defensive team capability.
It seems to be that everyone has won this trade. The Thunder get a great 3&D player that they need to go far in the playoffs this upcoming year, and the Bulls get an overall better player. Even Giddey wins this because of his now much needed fresh start. But, for fantasy we would choose Giddey over Caruso. We will see Alex Caruso kick back into that 3&D player that the Thunder need him to be, meaning his importance won't show up on fantasy. On the other hand, Josh Giddey is now one of the top options on a rebuilding Bulls team, and his stats will likely improve just because the Bulls will need him to play better.