Oklahoma City: The sting of a missed opportunity often lingers far longer than the initial mistake, a reality the Los Angeles Lakers are likely confronting with renewed bitterness. As the San Antonio Spurs outlasted the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-115 in a double-overtime thriller to open the Western Conference finals on Monday night, the shadow of an ancient front-office miscalculation loomed large over the court.

Victor Wembanyama delivered a monumental 41-point, 24-rebound performance to secure the road victory for San Antonio, but the game's early narrative belonged to a player the Lakers famously deemed expendable: Alex Caruso.

The Los Angeles Lakers regretted letting Alex Caruso walk in free agency just minutes into Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. When the Spurs ignited an opening 7-0 run, forcing Oklahoma City to summon Caruso from the bench just two and a half minutes into the contest, the 6-foot-5 guard offered an instantaneous rebuke to his former employers. Caruso catalysed a swift turnaround, delivering seven points on 3-of-4 shooting alongside a steal within a mere three minutes of floor time.

The sequence dragged the Thunder back into contention and underscored a painful truth for the purple-and-gold faithful: Caruso remains an elite, high-stakes game-changer.

A Tale of Two Trajectories

The lineage of Caruso’s career makes his current brilliance particularly agonising for Los Angeles.

  • The Genesis: The Lakers afforded Caruso his inaugural NBA opportunity in 2017, nurturing a four-year tenure that culminated in a 2020 championship run.
  • The Decision: Celebrated for his defensive acumen and efficient perimeter shooting, Caruso was nevertheless discarded in 2021 when Los Angeles executives elected to financially prioritise Talen Horton-Tucker.
  • The Aftermath: THT is now out of the NBA.

Conversely, Caruso earned two All-Defensive honours with the Chicago Bulls before anchoring Oklahoma City's 2025 championship campaign. Prior to Monday's marathon, the Thunder had coasted to an 8-0 postseason start—a stretch that featured a comprehensive sweep of the Lakers. Caruso shines in the biggest moments, and he proved it again at the start of the conference finals, finishing the evening with a spectacular 31 points off the bench, marking the second-highest scoring output of his career.

Drama in Double Overtime

Caruso’s heroics nearly rescued an otherwise turbulent night for the top-seeded Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, presented with his second consecutive Most Valuable Player trophy pregame, endured a brutal 7-for-23 shooting performance, concluding with 24 points and 12 assists. It was Gilgeous-Alexander's worst opening half from a shooting perspective in nearly three years, as he mustered just four points on 1-of-5 shooting before the intermission—his lowest first-half field goal output since October 2023, snapping a 270-game streak.

Compounding Oklahoma City’s struggles was the indomitable presence of Wembanyama. The sophomore phenom dominated the interior, navigating trios of defenders to register 14 points and 10 rebounds by halftime, carrying San Antonio to a 51-44 advantage.

"Meanwhile, Wembanyama was doing whatever he wanted — dunking over trios of defenders, flexing at times, finishing the half with 14 points and 10 rebounds, looking perfectly comfortable in his debut on this stage."

Though Gilgeous-Alexander engineered a brief third-quarter resurgence to momentarily seize the lead, the Spurs remained unflappable, carrying an 80-73 cushion into the final frame. San Antonio extended their advantage to 10 points with 9:10 remaining in regulation, only to watch it evaporate during a chaotic closing sequence featuring two lead changes and three ties in under two minutes. Wembanyama had an opportunity to win the game at the regulation buzzer, but his off-balance attempt was emphatically rejected by Chet Holmgren.

Ultimately, the matchup became just the sixth Game 1 in NBA playoff history to require double overtime, and the first since a 2013 battle between the Spurs and Warriors.

With midnight approaching, Wembanyama asserted his will, securing the victory with a pair of definitive dunks in the final minute, including a critical three-point play, to hand Oklahoma City its first loss of the postseason and shatter their nine-game playoff winning streak. Dylan Harper aided the effort with 24 points and a franchise playoff-record seven steals, while Stephon Castle (17 points), Devin Vassell (13), and Keldon Johnson (13) provided essential depth for a Spurs squad operating without De’Aaron Fox due to ankle stiffness. Jalen Williams added 26 points for the Thunder in his return from a six-game hamstring injury.

The Thunder will attempt to draw even when the series resumes for Game 2 on Wednesday night in Oklahoma City, but the opening salvo belonged to San Antonio, and the haunting brilliance of the guard the Lakers let slip away.