Ausar Thompson's Return Can't Come Soon Enough
Last year's fifth-overall pick in the NBA Draft took an important step in returning to the court.
The Detroit Pistons, coming off a soul-sucking loss to the Houston Rockets on Sunday afternoon, received massive news on Monday morning.
Ausar Thompson - the 5th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft - has been cleared by the NBA’s fitness-to-play panel to return to the court per ESPN’s Shams Charania. Thompson’s rookie season ended abruptly in March due to a blood clot issue, and he has not appeared in an NBA game since.
The Pistons have missed him dearly.
Thompson made waves last season for his ability to defend and swallow up rebounds on both ends of the floor. Amongst rookies, Thompson joined sensational big men Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren as the only three first-year players to record at least 50 blocks and 50 steals on the season. In 63 games last season, Thompson averaged 8.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game. Defensively, he added 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks per contest and was more than a net positive while on the floor.
The Pistons were six points per 100 possessions better with Thompson on the court versus off and were in the 88th percentile defensively when he was patrolling the floor per Cleaning the Glass. Even with an erratic offensive game, Thompson was still incredibly impactful to positive play. The only Piston who had a higher efficiency differential than Thompson last season (minimum 1000 minutes played) was Isaiah Stewart at +8.1.
Getting that type of production back - especially on the defensive end of the court - will be a boon for a Detroit team that has been waiting for the defensive head of their snake to return.
The Pistons have improved significantly as a defensive team under J.B. Bickerstaff. After being a bottom-five defensive team under Dwane Casey and Monty Williams, Detroit is an above average defense through their first 12 games this year. They have a 111.8 defensive rating, ranking 14th in the league. Thompson will only boost that.
Had Thompson been healthy and cleared to play prior to the start of this season, he may have been part of J.B. Bickerstaff’s starting lineup. Now, whether he starts or comes off the bench, Thompson will be a fixture in Bickerstaff’s rotation upon his return.
The hope is that Thompson will bring more than just his ability to impact the game defensively and on the glass. He spent the offseason working on his ball-handling and with Pistons assistant coach and shooting guru, Fred Vinson, on adjusting his jump shot.
Thompson is one of Detroit’s promising young pieces at just 21-years-old. It is unfortunate that he has already missed as much time as he has, but blood clots are not the same as a sprained ankle. A health issue like this can be incredibly scary, and have a much bigger impact on a person’s life elsewhere than just the basketball court.
But with Thompson cleared, the next step is to get the conditioning back to where it needs to be. While the waiting continues, Detroit’s x-factor crossed a major hurdle as he works his way back into the fold of a Pistons team that is starting to turn heads in the early stages of a new season.