Chicago Bulls: Alex Caruso’s defense will be a saving grace

A busy cycle of free agency has started to wind down for the Chicago Bulls in the last week. This cycle of free agency involved two major signings, and then two others in key support roles. The two major signings came via sign-and-trade deals with the Bulls nabbing New Orleans Pelicans point guard Lonzo Ball and San Antonio Spurs star shooting guard/forward DeMar DeRozan.

And then, the Bulls got key support signings out of free agency this summer in the former Oklahoma City Thunder center Tony Bradley and Los Angeles Lakers point guard Alex Caruso. The Bulls signed Bradley on a one-year deal worth around $3 million. And Caruso was signed for four years on a deal worth around a total of $37 million.

The asking price for Caruso was certainly not low, but he brings something to the table that the Bulls desperately needed to help head coach Billy Donovan heading into next season. Caruso was brought in to help upgrade the backcourt unit defensively. He is also switchable between the one and the two, and is a good shooter from deep.

But the main impact that Caruso will be able to have right away for Donovan and the Bulls is on the defensive end of the floor. He was one of the better defensive guards in recent memory for the Lakers. And that Lakers team, during the era with superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, had a lot of solid defensively-minded guards in the fold.

The main defensive strengths that Caruso will bring to the table for the Bulls will be his disruption on the perimeter, off-ball awareness, and lateral quickness which helps in switching. Caruso is quick and smart enough off-ball to know when switching is necessary, which helps to make up for defensive lapses for his teammates on the perimeter and the wing.

Having Caruso in the fold should really help star shooting guard Zach LaVine and former North Carolina Tar Heels point guard Coby White next season on the defensive end. LaVine is plenty quick enough, but he can get lulled to sleep off-ball. Caruso’s awareness and switching ability will really help make up for any lapses LaVine has.

White just makes a lot of mistakes defending on the perimeter. This could still be a learning process with Coby, but Caruso’s presence should help to bring his game along on this end of the floor.

Numbers and eye test prove how important Alex Caruso’s defense will be for the Chicago Bulls

Caruso had one of the better net ratings on the Lakers in the last two seasons. He finished up last season with a net rating just shy of six. Combine that with a defensive box plus/minus around 2.5 and defensive rating around 101 for the past two seasons, and the numbers tell the tale of how effective Caruso can be on that end of the floor.

Most seasons will see Caruso post a block percentage just north of one and a steal percentage just north of 2.5. That is a good level of production for a guard in the modern NBA. In fact, Caruso led the Lakers in steal percentage, steals per 36 minutes (1.9), and was second behind big man Marc Gasol in defensive box plus/minus last season.

Caruso also had some tough defensive assignments last season as a member of the Lakers (per NBA advanced stats tracking). He faced superstar guard James Harden in bits and pieces of three different games, and allowed him to shoot just 14 percent from the field and 25 percent from beyond the arc.

And here’s a list of some of the players that Caruso helped to draw at least 0.25 turnovers per minute off of last season:

• Luka Doncic (.43 turnovers forced per minute)
• Jayson Tatum (.45 turnovers forced per minute)
• Chris Paul (.37 turnovers forced per minute)
• Harden (.35 turnovers forced per minute)

Caruso is going to be the type of switchable guard that Donovan can use in situations where the Bulls are struggling to slow down opposing star guards. His ability to matchup effectively with the likes of Tatum and Harden could be huge for the Bulls against the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets next season.

It will also be interesting to see how Caruso matches up with top guards/smaller wings in the Central Division. Some of those stars he could face are Khris Middleton, Malcolm Brogdon, Jrue Holiday, and potentially even rookie Cade Cunningham.

Adding Caruso to the mix gives the Bulls something to turn to on the bench in the backcourt that wasn’t available since Kris Dunn left town. There will be a switchable guard that can be a solid defender against really any opposing guard.

The difference between Caruso and Dunn is the the former Lakers guard can shoot it well from deep. Last season, Caruso shot 40.1 percent from beyond the arc. That was the second time in four seasons in his career that Caruso shot north of 40 percent from downtown.

All in all, Caruso will be a great defensive addition for the Bulls. His defensive value is unmatched by any other guard on the roster likely outside of Lonzo. Granted, the Bulls are getting another solid defensive presence out of the recently re-signed former Celtics shooting guard Javonte Green.

Caruso is likely to fit into this rotation in a second unit guard role behind Lonzo and LaVine. Playing him with Coby could make sense in the second unit given that shot creation could at least be provided by the former Tar Heel.