Thunder guard Alex Caruso is getting a 2nd NBA Finals chance, this time with fans

Alex Caruso is the only current Oklahoma City Thunder player who has previous experience playing in the NBA Finals.

That said, even he has no idea what this year's series will feel like.

Caruso was on the Los Angeles Lakers team that beat the Miami Heat in the 2020 NBA Finals in the bubble at Lake Buena Vista, Florida, meaning the games were played all in one place, with almost no fans, and an atmosphere that will in no way compare to what awaits when this year's finals start in Oklahoma City on Thursday night.

“The finals in the bubble still had the tangible feel of a finals," Caruso said. "You knew what was up for grabs. That adrenaline before the game, obviously, I don’t think it would probably be the same adrenaline level that you feel with fans, just being on the other side of it now. But understanding what’s at stake was still very apparent.”

The Thunder will take on either Indiana or New York in this year's series. Game 1 is in Oklahoma City, where the Thunder are 43-7 this season. They're 80-18 this season overall — not counting a loss in the NBA Cup title game, which doesn't count — and that's why Caruso doesn't feel the need to do a whole lot of how-to-handle-the-finals coaching right now.

“You don’t have to do anything special. You just have to be who we are," Caruso said. "That’s worked for us throughout this whole year. So, I’m just continuing to emphasize with the guys, just do what we’ve done all year. Compete at a high level, play together, play as a team. When we do that, we’re pretty good.”

At 31, Caruso is the old man of the Thunder — the oldest player on the roster, despite there being more than 80 other active players in the NBA older than he is right now.

The NBA said the Thunder are the second-youngest team to make the finals in the last 70 seasons, with an average age of 25.56. That's about a half-year per player older than Portland was when the Trail Blazers made the finals in 1977.

“We’ve got one of the youngest teams in the league still," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. "And these guys are growing at a really rapid rate. And we’ve had a lot of individual players really grow quickly and grow in impactful ways in a short period of time.”

But they rely on Caruso in many ways as well. A team loaded with young talent — MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren — is still willing to listen and learn, which is where Caruso comes in.

“There’s never a second where he’s not engaged in the competition, fully engaged in the competition," said Daigneault, who coached Caruso with the G League's Oklahoma City Blue and coaches him now with the Thunder. “And I think that right there, the contagiousness of that and the consistency of that, is really the impact. It doesn’t matter if it’s a drill in shootaround or whether it’s a side out of bounds play on a short shot clock. That guy, Alex Caruso, is completely engaged in that moment.”

And Caruso will be completely engaged in the finals, with hopes of getting a second ring — and a first parade.

Those 2020 finals ended in October because of the COVID-interrupted year, and training camps resumed just a few weeks later. There was no traditional offseason after that title by the Lakers, and Caruso still laments missing out on some of the fun.

“There's parts of winning a championship that I didn’t get to experience through that first championship," Caruso said. "I never got to go on a parade. The turnaround for the next season was like a month. I went to Cabo for a couple of days and then started working out again because the next season was about to start. There's a little bit of enjoying the success that I didn’t get to necessarily participate in. But I've got another chance to get it done and try again with fans and with a parade and all that.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Oklahoma City Thunder's Alex Caruso, bottom left, hands a souvenir to a young fan after the team's win against the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 in the Western Conference semifinals of the NBA basketball playoffs, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)

Oklahoma City Thunder's Alex Caruso celebrates as he walks off the court after the team's win against the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 in the Western Conference semifinals of the NBA basketball playoffs, Sunday, May 18, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) works toward the basket as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) defends during the first half of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs, Wednesday, May 28, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder guards Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) and Alex Caruso (9) high-five during the second half of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals of the NBA basketball playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Wednesday, May 28, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Four years after showing up late for the Beijing Olympics and missing one of his races because of a case of COVID-19, U.S. long track speedskater Casey Dawson is enjoying what he jokingly terms his “villain arc,” peaking at the right time ahead of the Milan Cortina Games.

Dawson secured a spot for next month in the men's 5,000 meters — an event he was forced to skip in 2022 while sick — by winning at that distance at the U.S. Olympic trials in 6 minutes, 12.857 seconds on Friday night.

“I actually got COVID two or three weeks before going to the competition. Tested positive for 50 straight tests,” said Dawson, a 25-year-old from Park City, Utah. “Couldn’t go over to the Games. I missed the opening ceremonies. Missed the 5,000 meters. Showed up 12 hours before my 1,500 meters. So I kind of got a little screwed over from that point of view. But this time around, I’m just looking forward to getting there smoothly and just getting a little bit of redemption.”

And then, with a chuckle, Dawson added: “It’s kind of fun to have, like, my villain arc, I would call it. Just coming back and having some fun.”

Ethan Cepuran was about 6 1/2 seconds back Friday, finishing next in 6:19.335.

The last American man to medal in the 5,000 at an Olympics was Chad Hedrick at the 2006 Turin Games.

Dawson already had secured the lone U.S. place for Milan in the men’s 10,000 — a race not being contested at these trials — and also will be part of the trio for men’s team pursuit at the Olympics.

Dawson, Cepuran and Emery Lehman took the bronze in that event in Beijing four years ago, set the world record in 2024 and claimed gold in the team pursuit at the world championships in March.

In the other race Friday, the women's 3,000, Greta Myers won in 4:06.799. As of now, the United States does not have a berth in Milan for that distance, but one of its athletes could end up in the field if another country relinquishes an opening.

“It's hard to wait,” said Myers, a 21-year-old from Lino Lakes, Minnesota. “But I'm very hopeful. I think it's at least a 50-50 chance that it'll happen.”

The U.S. Olympic roster for long track won't become official until the four-day trials at the Pettit National Ice Center wrap up on Monday. One element that could come into play is that the Americans are allowed to bring a maximum of eight men and six women to these Winter Games.

The biggest star of the team — and the sport — is scheduled to make his trials debut Saturday in the men's 1,000 meters: Jordan Stolz. The 21-year-old from Kewaskum, a town about 40 miles north of Milwaukee, is not just competing at home this week; he's racing at the same rink where he first began taking lessons as a kid.

He made his Olympic debut at age 17 in Beijing four years ago, finishing 13th in the 500 and 14th in the 1,000.

At both the 2023 and 2024 world championships, Stolz earned titles in each of the 500, 1,000 and 1,500 meters.

He's already pre-qualified for the Olympics based on performances at those three distances. All he really needs to do to lock down berths on the squad for the Feb. 6-22 Milan Cortina Games is show up at the starting line this week.

The 500 and 1,500 are slated for Sunday, and the mass start is Monday.

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Casey Dawson, of Park City, Utah, right, and Ethan Cepuran, of Glen Ellyn, lllinois, left, compete in the men's 5,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic trials for long track speed skating at the Pettit National Ice Center in Milwaukee, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Howard Fendrich)

The Pettit National Ice Center is seen in Milwaukee on Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, the first day of the U.S. Olympic trials for long track speedskating. (AP Photo/Howard Fendrich)