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Just months after being traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Alex Caruso celebrated getting engaged to his fiancee, Haleigh Broucher, in an Instagram post with multiple photos. The couple in matching outfits is shown embracing, posing and celebrating their engagement with drinks, friends and family. Broucher, a former reality TV star from the CBS show Big Brother, and Caruso have been together for nearly three years.
Broucher has been the consummate supportive girlfriend, sending a big thank you to the Chicago Bulls after they opted to trade Caruso earlier this summer on Instagram.
“I want to say how amazing the Bulls organization has been, how hard everyone works behind the scenes, and how grateful I am for all of the friends I’ve made along the way,” she wrote. “I truly cherish each and every one of them and will miss them terribly. Excited for a new chapter and grateful for the old.”
How Alex Caruso's defense can be a game-changer for Oklahoma City Thunder
The “3 & D” specialist looks like a great fit with the Thunder. In 2022-23, he was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team and to the Second-Team in 2023-24. Caruso and Shai Gilgeous Alexander will form a terrific backcourt duo. Pair them with Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams and this year's big splash free-agent signing Isaiah Hartenstein, and it's clear the Thunder have one of the best and most balanced starting lineups in the NBA.
The Texas A&M alum won a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020-21. In his career, he's averaged a 109.8 defensive rating and, most recently, notched a 113.2 DRTG in 2023-24. In 2022-23, Project 538 highlighted his league-best 6.1 Defensive RAPTOR. The long and short of that means he was really good at defending.
Speaking to how highly the Chicago Bulls thought of Caruso, multiple teams were willing to pay big money to try to acquire the guard.
“The Bulls engaged several teams over the past 18 months that were willing to sacrifice first-round draft capital for Caruso, sources said, while Chicago characteristically pushed for unprotected picks and as many as four firsts in some of those conversations,” Fischer reports. “Chicago also refused to include Caruso in deals that would have offloaded Zach LaVine,” sources said.
Instead of receiving that draft capital, they were content to receive Josh Giddey only, as they may have waited too long to trade Caruso.
After an impressive 57-25 record last season, expectations will be even higher for the Thunder in 2024-25. In our most recent NBA Power Rankings, the Thunder are ranked third-best, only behind the two teams in the NBA Finals last year, the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks.
