Getting To Know: Jason Thompson
January 31, 2008
Jason Thompson is a prospect who, until recently, has played in relative obscurity for the Rider Broncos in the MAAC Conference. This season, however, he has had the opportunity to showcase his abilities in nationally televised games against the likes of Kansas State, North Carolina State, Penn State, and Rutgers. Now, following an away victory we attended against Marist, Thompson’s Rider Broncos are sitting on top of the MAAC standings alongside rival Siena, and seem poised for a big finish.
Rider Sports Information
Offensively,
Jason Thompson is a versatile prospect. Possessing the inside-outside game that scouts like to see from a 6’11 big men, Thompson’s problem has always been putting it all together. Tonight did nothing to dispel this notion, as he had a typical statistical night, but showed the positives and negative aspects of his game to an audience of scouts that included Cavaliers GM
Danny Ferry and scouts from the Cavaliers and
Kings. Going up against Marist’s smallish frontcourt, Thompson rarely used his superior size, quickness, and athleticism to his advantage. While he had a couple of nice possessions in which he faced the basket and attacked the rim, he had trouble maintaining his position in the low post and was visibly frustrated by his lack of touches as the game wore on. In fact, he did not successfully score with his back to the basket until he literally muscled a Marist big man from the perimeter for an easy basket with 8 minutes remaining in the second half! His low post game, in particular suffered because he was unable to find his touch around the basket, which has been a question throughout the season. He did have a nice defensive game, proving himself to be a good shot blocker with his combination of timing, patience, and athleticism. He did a good job of not biting on the Marist post players’ ball and head fakes, and really using his size and length to his advantage on the low block. At times, though, his concentration on the defensive end seemed to wane, and he let some undersized and fairly unskilled big men have their way with him around the basket.
However, Thompson again showed a range of tantalizing flashes that allow him to dominate at this level, even if he has a lot more work to do on his game. He often releases his shot after the peak of his jump for example. Focus is a key, as well. Thompson can afford to coast if things are not going his way at this level, but at the next level, he must be willing to fight during the entire game on both ends of the floor. Consistency is also important. Right now, it seems that Thompson is still learning his role and how to incorporate his set of skills into a cohesive and consistent offensive game. While he didn’t always do enough to convince everyone differently in past analysis, Thompson’s abilities and potential are undeniable and his efforts against high-major big men this year, including Kansas State’s
Michael Beasley and North Carolina State’s
J.J. Hickson have showed the draft pundits that he can compete with NBA level size and athleticism. But, if last night’s game is any indication, Thompson will have to continue to make his case at the pre-draft camps and team workouts if the high draft expectations that follow him around are going to come to fruition.
Following his 20 point (8/17 field goals, 4/6 free throws), 9 rebound (4 offensive), 4 assist, and 4 block performance, we had a chance to catch up with the Thompson and ask him about his improvements, the implications of an NBA prospect playing for a mid-major school, and the surprising emergence of his brother Ryan into a prospect: