The cult celebrity status of Los Angeles Lakers guard Alex Caruso is unlike anything the league has witnessed in years. Caruso earned himself a two-year contract last offseason after turning heads with numerous highlights and excellent performances as a two-way player and this season has proven he is a legitimate NBA player.
But beyond his contributions on the court, Caruso’s star in the age of social media has led to many moments that will live on forever. One of the biggest came during an early season game against the Utah Jazz when pop superstar Rihanna was front row.
Cameras caught here closely watching the floor as Caruso walked by, after which she whispered something to her friend. The moment immediately led to a famous meme with Rihanna eyeing Caruso that spread everywhere.
Caruso recently spoke about the moment in an interview on the “Mornings with Keyshawn, LZ, and Travis” radio show on ESPN L.A., admitting to some curiosity as to what was said:
“It’s funny, because playing in L.A. and everywhere we go, we get a lot of celebrity attention and people show up to the games. It’s become sort of normal to see people of that status at the games. Once I saw that meme afterwards — of course everybody that I knew sent it to me and everybody on the internet sent it to me — I thought it was funny. I really was just curious to know what she was saying, but I guess that’ll be the eighth wonder of the world.”
Being a part of the Lakers organization always brings an extra level of star power as it is one of the most visible franchises in all of sports. For Caruso to go from an undrafted player, to a two-way contract, to rotation player and cult hero is a massive change but he has handled everything in stride.
Every week there seems to be some new gif or meme popping up of Caruso and he has a great attitude towards everything and just continues to do his job and play well. We may never find out what Rihanna said in that moment, but Caruso has also said that he’ll be sure to approach Rihanna the next time he’s presented the opportunity.