Does trading 16th pick for Alex Caruso make sense for Philadelphia 76ers?
With their highest first round pick position since 2018, the Philadelphia 76ers find themselves in an interesting spot heading into this year’s NBA Draft.
Right now, the 76ers own the 16th overall pick and while there are some intriguing prospects projected to be available mid-first round it has been widely speculated that the Sixers could use that pick in a trade rather than banking on young talent out of college.
A player that has been brought up as a potential trade target (more than a few times) would be Chicago Bulls guard Alex Caruso.
Ky Carlin of SixersWire appeared on 97.5 “The Fanatic” and brought up the possibility of the 76ers trading their 16th pick, name dropping Alex Caruso as a potential target.
“I don’t think the Sixers keep the #16 pick in this draft. I think they trade that pick away for a win-now player. Alex Caruso is the immediate name that comes to mind. If you’re the Sixers you have to at least give the Bulls a call to see if he’s available.”
With the Chicago Bulls being stuck in mediocrity over the past few seasons, many teams around the league have been interested in trading for their veteran players – Andre Drummond (including the 76ers) and Alex Caruso, for very good reason.
Okay so…what does Alex Caruso do?
At 6’ 5 with a high motor, Alex Caruso is one of the best on-ball perimeter defenders in the NBA. He has an elite ability to pester ball-handlers and force turnovers with his naturally elevated defensive instincts.
Caruso can keep up with just about any back-court player off the point-of-attack and with his knack for navigating screens and recovering onto his man, he’s established himself as a member of an All-NBA Defensive Team the last two seasons.
Not only is Alex Caruso a defensive stud, but he’s also a modest ball-handler, an active back-door cutter, and has greatly improved his perimeter shooting throughout the season.
Last year, Caruso shot 36.4% from beyond on 2.3 attempts per game and this year he shot an elite 40.8% from deep on 4.7 attempts per night.
With Alex Caruso’s impressive two-way ability, he’d serve as a near-perfect back-court partner for Tyrese Maxey and a textbook floor-spacer for Joel Embiid. While he’s not quite as witty of a ball-handler as Kyle Lowry, Caruso can initiate some offense on occasions, but he’s arguably better than Lowry off the ball and his defense would certainly make up for it.
Alex Caruso can defend any team’s best guard or wing player on any given night, which is something that the 76ers lack with defensive ace De’Anthony Melton playing just 38 games this season due to back issues and also a free agent this summer.
Where does Alex Caruso leave De’Anthony Melton?
Both guards haven’t exactly been ironmen recently as Melton’s back injury affected him for nearly the entirety of this season and Caruso has played 70+ games only once in his career (2023-2024). You could argue that the 76ers should just stick with Melton considering how similar he and Caruso are, but there are a few aspects to note when having this discussion.
De’Anthony Melton is one of several 76ers players that is headed for unrestricted free agency this summer. Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes predicted that Melton could land a multi-year contract that gives him a total of $60 million, which is a price Philadelphia may not want to pay if they’re trying to preserve flexibility to obtain a star-level player through free agency or trade.
Meanwhile, Caruso still has one year left on his contract, which will pay him approximately $9.9 million next season, which in itself would be very attractive to Philadelphia’s goal to preserve flexibility for when a star of their liking becomes available. It’s also worth noting that when both guards are on the court, Caruso is simply a better all-around player.
On paper trading for Alex Caruso seems like a no-brainer for both the 76ers and Bulls. Philadelphia has the 16th overall pick in this year’s draft and a stash of future first-round picks from themselves and the Clippers as a part of the James Harden trade.
With Caruso entering the last season of his deal and Chicago’s ceiling not getting any higher, trading him for draft capital, which includes the 16th pick, and another pick(s), seems like a solid outcome rather than potentially losing him for nothing in the 2025 offseason.
However, this is the Chicago Bulls we’re talking about. This franchise that’s bathed in mediocrity since Michael Jordan crossed Bryon Russell and drilled a 20-foot jumper. For whatever reason, they seem to be infatuated with a core of Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Nikola Vucevic but it simply hasn’t worked. Year after year, they are destined for the Play-In Tournament.
Alex Caruso Mock Trade:
Chicago Bulls receive:
- 2024 16th overall pick
- 2026 first-round pick swap (via OKC, HOU, or LAC)
- 2027 second-round pick (via MIL)
Philadelphia 76ers receive:
- Alex Caruso
At first glance, you may think that giving up two first-round picks for Caruso is a bit of an overpay. But, Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype reported that Chicago’s asking price for him is said to be around two first-round picks this past trade deadline and when you factor in the interest Caruso draws from other contending teams, it’s a reasonably fair price.
The 76ers have a lot of options heading into the offseason and Alex Caruso is just one of the many players Philadelphia can target this offseason with an array of draft capital and a whole lot of spending money in free agency.
Mandatory Credit: Copyright 2024 NBAE(Photo by Eric Espada/NBAE via Getty Images)
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