NBA 2019-20: 3 dark horses for the Los Angeles Lakers this season so far

#2 Alex Caruso

The Bald Eagle is building a reputation for himself.

Working his way up from the South Bay Lakers - Lakers' G-League affiliate - Alex Caruso has been a menace for opponents down the stretch. Amongst players who get at least 20 minutes per game, Caruso has the league's fourth best defensive rating in 95.5, which is pretty commendable this early in the season.

"Caruso is a star defender. I think he's elite," Vogel told Mike Trudell. "When you study him on tape or just watch him in summer workouts, you see he has pretty good feet and good length. But there are a lot of 6'5" defenders that you think should be great defenders cause they're long, but they're not good defenders. But Alex is. He has great instincts and that's the biggest thing with him."

* @ACFresh21 continues to lead the Lakers in defensive rating at 96.3. Here’s Frank Vogel explaining how: pic.twitter.com/lS11kj2hbA

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) November 30, 2019

The 25-year-old is only averaging 5.2 points, 2 boards and 1.9 assists per game, but his defensive acumen has persuaded LA Lakers Coach Frank Vogel to insert him in whenever he has wanted to turn up the intensity defensively.

His monstrous put-backs have found a special place in the hearts of basketball fans while his lock-down defense has drawn accolades from the game's experts.