Alex Caruso says JaVale McGee is ‘the inspiration and the catalyst’ for his headband celebration

Alex Caruso doesn’t need to do much to generate a new meme. Thanks to Lakers fans, just about anything he does on the court we’ll get internet-ed into oblivion. But when he leans into his calling as the viral sensation known only as “The Bald Eagle,” however, that’s when we’ve gotten some moments that are truly special.

One instance of Caruso having some fun with his appearance has been the debut of “Headband Caruso” earlier this season, complete with a fun new celebration to match with the persona:

But what made him want to don the headband, and what prompted the celebration? During an Instagram live session with Lakers teammate Jared Dudley on the latter’s new account, Caruso gave us some answers:

“First answer is JaVale. Me and JaVale have a good relationship just from playing with him for the last two years when I was on two-way... so we’ve got good chemistry. And me and JaVale’s lockers are next to each other, so he’s always just trying to put me on game and trying to make me more L.A., cuz I’m a pretty basic kid from Texas, I like to keep it low key.

“So he hooked me up with a barber and then told me I had to start rocking the headband, so I was like, ‘alright I’ll try it out’ and then I can’t remember what game it was, but it was one of the games I was playing well and I want to say that I just did it kinda naturally... and JaVale from there just kind of took it and ran with it. Yeah he’s the inspiration and the catalyst behind the headband (celebration).”

McGee has had a lot of fun taking credit for Caruso’s growing swag while Caruso tries to talk to the media after games this season, so this is no surprise for those paying attention. The two do seem to genuinely enjoy each other’s company on an already chemistry-laden Lakers squad, and they have an enjoyable odd couple dynamic. Their interplay as a duo is just one of the many things to miss about our current basketball-less existence, and hopefully they’re spending this time cooking up some more celebrations to show us when they return to the court.

For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.