Alex Caruso was considered an amazing success story for the Los Angeles Lakers. He went from undrafted in 2016, to a two-way player and finally a key contributor to their 2020 championship team. Caruso made it happen by being dedicated to his craft and working on his physique, which allowed him to appear chiseled after a few years in the NBA.
Along the way, it earned him a huge cult following, to the point where plenty of Lakers fans actually overrated him.
The team’s new undrafted success story is guard Austin Reaves. Unlike Caruso, Reaves doesn’t have any hyperbole surrounding him. Like Caruso, he is dedicated to being the best he can be and possesses plenty of grit and toughness.
Perhaps Reaves can still get better after earning a big new four-year contract from Los Angeles, and it starts with him bulking up to withstand the rigors of the NBA. According to Dave McMenamin on “The Lowe Post” podcast, the Lakers want Reaves to follow the “Caruso plan” (h/t Silver Screen and Roll).
“That’s the next challenge for him is to continue to work on his body. I’ve had people in the organization tell me ‘We just have to get him on the Caruso Plan,’ and you saw what Alex Caruso went in his time on the Lakers to his time on the Bulls. His body completely transformed and Austin certainly has the work ethic and the love of the game to do so.”
Reaves took a monumental step forward in his production this past season compared to the 2021-22 campaign, which was his rookie year. Based on his intangibles, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see him become an All-Star in the near future, something head coach Darvin Ham believes will happen.
