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As the stage is set for Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals series against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso discusses how to contain the NBA's reigning Most Valuable Player. Head coach Mark Daigneault spent a week preparing the Thunder for round 2, which will headline the MVP battle between Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
For Caruso, Jokic is among the top NBA players, and the Thunder must prepare for him by challenging his approach throughout the series.
“Jokic is in that tier of players, along with Shai and a handful of other guys in the league, where they're just going to kind of get their numbers,” Caruso said. “I've talked about this in the past, where if you do a great job on guys of that caliber, they'll probably get their averages. And if you don't, they can go for headline stuff. The biggest thing is just making it tough on him. He's a great player.
When you make it tough on him, and when you don't, he's maybe the toughest coverage guy in the league just with his ability to pass, he rebounds, he's gotten better defensively as far as getting steals and deflections. So, we got our work cut out for ourselves, but we're up for the challenge, and I think we're excited to go out there and meet him head-on,” Caruso concluded.
As the two 2025 MVP candidates, Jokic and Gilgeous-Alexander, square off in the postseason, their respective teams' depth could ultimately decide which team wins the best-of-7 series. Alex Caruso played a significant role throughout the Thunder's 4-0 sweep against the Memphis Grizzlies in the opening round of the playoffs. He was instrumental on both ends of the floor, including Game 3's emphatic 29-point comeback, Oklahoma City's most improbable playoff win in franchise history.
Mark Daigneault's preparation approach for Thunder's round 2
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Stellar performances from Nuggets' Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are guaranteed in the Thunder's second-round series. Still, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault spent the past week focused on improving as a team.
“We’re still working on ourselves. We don’t want to make any assumptions. We don’t want to put a lot of time into one team and then, next thing you know, the other team wins,” Daigneault said. “So, there’s enough we can work on, and there’s enough fundamentals that are gonna matter no matter what, that we can work on them. We’re going to be at no disadvantage from a preparation standpoint relative to our opponent.
The Thunder will host the Nuggets for Game 1 on Monday.
