Jason Thompson

[NyfdRIP343]

If you guys have NBATV as one of your channels, check out "Destination NBA DRAFT" they have it running throughout tomorrow and they have certain clips of Jason Thompson...shows a little part of Rider campus, coach talking about him, jason working out in chicago grover camp, and also graduating. Just thought I'd let you guys know, its pretty cool.

 

[BritishColumbia]

That's because all five players on the court for Duke and Memphis are superior to the players from Rider and Sienna. Which was the point; the only reason why Thompson was getting double and triple-teamed in the first place was because the guys he was playing against were so bad, and that he wouldn't have been double-teamed against Duke or Memphis.

Yes, that is the reason why he was triple-teamed and that is why it was not so easy for him to score. Every game he had to overcome a forest of players. He did not have that privilege to play 1-on-1. Yes, again, competition was not that tough and people might think that it was super easy to get his stats because he played against a small and weak guy, but he actually played against 2 and 3 ones at one time.

And, even if you play for Memphis, you still play A LOT of games against weak teams. Only you have 5-6 good players with you every game. Jason was almost alone. Do you think it is easy to score 20 points every game in this situation ???

 

[Gary]

How well do you think he compliments Hawes? I think the two will be great together. Thompson has good hands, and can shoot from outside. Hawes is a great post player with good hands who can also take it outside or make a pass to a slasher.

I think Hawes, and Thompson will compliment eachother well.

 

[Gary]

Slim,

What I care about when rating players I don't get to see much (besides stats) is how they played against other drafted players...

24/7/3/4 against Beasley
24/15/3/2 against Hickson

In two years when Ryan Thompson comes out I would like to see the Kings draft him. The kid is going to go off this year not having big brother taking most of the shots. Ryan is a 6'6-6'7 210lbs SG who is a monster on D, and a good rebounder/outside shooter. He also passes the ball, and supposedly handled a lot of the PG duties this year. They were the only two players that were any good on that team, and they almost made it to the NCAAs on their own. That's pretty impressive.

 

[Aenadin]

Why does he have to be 250? 220-230 works perfectly fine for Bosh and he's an inch taller than Randolph.

Also, I'd have no problem with Randolph even ending up sticking at SF. I believe he'll become a very good 2 way player, he has very good guard skills, mid range jumper, and good ability to change directions.

well i wouldnt know about that.. bosh IS primarily a PF and he was born for that position randolph i see him more of a SF that can play a little PF but what we needed was a whole lot PF... and reading on about thompson he could shoot you know how GP loves people who can shoot

bosh is fine... the problem is how he will fare guarding bigger people such as the howards and the odens

thompson brings the same things too he can shoot, he can pass, hes athletic and can rebound..

 

[mm16]

sorry if this has been posted already but i was looking around for info on him and found he has a website!

http://www.jasonthompson1.com/

 

[Rockmeister]

Could you be more vague?

Why don't you explain the sentence that I highlight in bold for you?

 

[Warhawk]

Why does he have to be 250? 220-230 works perfectly fine for Bosh and he's an inch taller than Randolph.

Also, I'd have no problem with Randolph even ending up sticking at SF. I believe he'll become a very good 2 way player, he has very good guard skills, mid range jumper, and good ability to change directions.

Um, but we needed a 4, not a 3. Hence the reason you take a talented 4 in the draft, and not a twig who may, eventually, work his way up to a 4 by adding 25% of his body mass over time. Unless that guy is a sure fire superstar, and Randolf sure isn't.

 

[MassachusettsKingsFan]

I'm not sure what side of the fence im on when it comes to the quality of defenders or the quantity but how do you think he'd fair on a team like kansas, ucla, memphis or UNC? . theres just so many ways to look at this, his stats are better than all the star players of the teams i mentioned (love,arthur,hansbrough) but at the same time they had other good players taking shots, making shots and grabbing boards where thompson had to "do it all himself" so does it make thompsons stats more impressive because he was all alone? or less impressive because he didnt have other good players taking away his opportunities?


bottom line for me is that we worked him out 3 times, we saw him against other potential players in our range and apparently he was the best .. i know playing an actual game is different but when you look at how hes played and how hes worked out how can you blame petrie for picking him when all the points were trying to make could go either way?

 

[Stonedrie]

I'm not sure what side of the fence im on when it comes to the quality of defenders or the quantity but how do you think he'd fair on a team like kansas, ucla, memphis or UNC? . theres just so many ways to look at this, his stats are better than all the star players of the teams i mentioned (love,arthur,hansbrough) but at the same time they had other good players taking shots, making shots and grabbing boards where thompson had to "do it all himself" so does it make thompsons stats more impressive because he was all alone? or less impressive because he didnt have other good players taking away his opportunities?


bottom line for me is that we worked him out 3 times, we saw him against other potential players in our range and apparently he was the best .. i know playing an actual game is different but when you look at how hes played and how hes worked out how can you blame petrie for picking him when all the points were trying to make could go either way?

That will always be the question when you draft someone out of a Mid-Major, let alone a school that has never had a pro athlete.
I find it impressive, that it never felt like he had to do it all himself. He never forced the issue offensively. If he felt like he had the best chance to make the shot, he would certainly take the jump shots if they were given to him. Took a 3 a game last year.

Also, I think a lot of the evaluating and high praise for him also comes from all the basketball camps he did. That is where he really started to get noticed after his sophmore year. Where he did play against the highest level of talent- and apparently did well.

 

[Entity]

Slim I totally respect your opinion. I understand completely where you are coming from. I guess this is just one of the cases where we have to wait and see. Well he won't get much competition in the summer league. I guess when we play Portland Oden might be there.

Now I am not saying he will be getting 20 and 12 his rookie season. I am not saying he is better than Beasley. But I also can't say that he is going to be a bust because he wasn't in the ACC. Just wondering what your take was on him when he did play agains't Beasley and Hickson?

Let me say this about Randolph. I am in SEC country and all of the SEC plays small. Randolph or Hendrix didn't have much going against them.

 

[Entity]

Upon further review. Dwight Howard averaged 16 pts 13 reb in high school and was drafted #1 now thats against players that didn't even get recruited by Rider lol. So the competition thing don't fly in that case why should it in Thompsons case?

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

Dwight Howard was also considered a can't-miss prospect. Did anybody consider Jason Thompson a can't-miss prospect?

The answer, of course, is no. If they had, he wouldn't have gone to Rider. Players like Dwight Howard and LeBron James are the exceptions that prove the rule, not the other way around.

 

[1kingzfan]

I'm not sure what side of the fence im on when it comes to the quality of defenders or the quantity but how do you think he'd fair on a team like kansas, ucla, memphis or UNC? . theres just so many ways to look at this, his stats are better than all the star players of the teams i mentioned (love,arthur,hansbrough) but at the same time they had other good players taking shots, making shots and grabbing boards where thompson had to "do it all himself" so does it make thompsons stats more impressive because he was all alone? or less impressive because he didnt have other good players taking away his opportunities?


bottom line for me is that we worked him out 3 times, we saw him against other potential players in our range and apparently he was the best .. i know playing an actual game is different but when you look at how hes played and how hes worked out how can you blame petrie for picking him when all the points were trying to make could go either way?

This sums it up perfectly.

For all these reasons, including the 1v1 vs triple team thing-y, you cannot say with any degree of certainty that playing at Rider was a weakness in terms of NBA readiness or a strength vs playing at Kansas or LSU or Memphis. That's why you look at the tape, you work out the players, getting a handle on their true skill levels, and you also gauge work ethic and character.

Obviously, Petrie, Theus, and our scouting team were in agreement, after all this due diligence, that JT was a better long-term prospect than more highly-mock-touted bigs still on the board that played in tough conferences, including four bigs that started in the national championship game for presumably the best two big-time college programs last year.

It's a strong statement, after Beasley, Love, and Lopez, that the Kings could have selected any 4/5 player on the planet, and they chose to go with JT.

I'll stand by my opinion that school pedigree, while nice to have, goes by the wayside if you see the skill set needed to develop into a solid NBA producer.

 

[Stonedrie]

Dwight Howard was also considered a can't-miss prospect. Did anybody consider Jason Thompson a can't-miss prospect?

The answer, of course, is no. If they had, he wouldn't have gone to Rider. Players like Dwight Howard and LeBron James are the exceptions that prove the rule, not the other way around.

He went to Rider because he wanted to start his Freshman year. He did get recruited by other schools.

 

[Entity]

Dwight Howard was also considered a can't-miss prospect. Did anybody consider Jason Thompson a can't-miss prospect?

The answer, of course, is no. If they had, he wouldn't have gone to Rider. Players like Dwight Howard and LeBron James are the exceptions that prove the rule, not the other way around.

But why? because he averaged 16 and 13 against high schoolers. You say he was considered can't miss. Tell me why? What basis did this go on? Just wondering who and how they came to this conclusion because he averaged a double double in high school?

 

[bajaden]

He went to Rider because he wanted to start his Freshman year. He did get recruited by other schools.

He turned down a scholarship to UCLA. Rider was about 40 miles from where he lived and he wanted to be close to home.

 

[Entity]

great article on JT he did go against competition in pickup games including LEBRON JAMES. http://www.sportsline.com/nba/players/draft/530496

Thompson's trophy case got much bigger after his stellar senior campaign, when he walked away Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Year and MAAC Defensive Player of the Year. He garnered All-American and All-District III accolades, in addition to being named the United States Basketball Writers Association District II Player of the Year.

Thompson credits his emergence to work at the LeBron James Skills Academy in Akron, Ohio, attended by the best high school prospects in the nation and elite college players are selected as mentors.

Thompson honed his skills playing pickup games with All-Americans Drew Neitzel of Michigan State and Brook Lopez of Stanford, Scottie Reynolds of Villanova, Wesley Matthews of Marquette, Hasheem Thabeet of Connecticut, Chris Douglas-Roberts of Memphis and JaJuan Smith of Tennessee, along with James himself.

After one outstanding game last summer, FoxSports.com reported, "Thompson's play was a shock to college coaches and NBA scouts in attendance. He wasted little time scoring over LeBron James and also was solid defensively on the NBA star."

Playing on both ends of the court is nothing new for Thompson. In 2006-07, he was one of just three collegiate players to average over 20 points and 10 rebounds per game -- only four other athletes accomplished that feat last season. As a senior, he registered at least 20 points with at least 20 rebounds in three games (vs. Delaware, 23 points/21 rebounds; at Siena, 23/21; vs. Niagra, 26/24).

At Lenape High School, Thompson averaged 15 points and 12 rebounds per game, leading head coach Bill Lange's squad to a 28-1 record when they captured their first ever Group IV state title. He was named second-team All-South Jersey and first-team All-State Group IV that year and was selected to play in the New Jersey North-South All-Star game. As a junior, he averaged 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots per game.

Thompson appeared in 30 games as a true freshman at Rider University in 2004-05. He was named Freshman All-American by CollegeInsider.com and garnered All-MAAC honors, in addition to making the league's All-Tournament and All-Rookie squads. He averaged 9.1 points per game, shooting 44.1 percent from the field, and averaged 7.4 rebounds and blocked 29 shots.

As a sophomore, he was a second-team All-MAAC choice. He led the team and ranked second in the conference with 48 blocks in 27 contests. He shot 54.6 percent from the field (159-of-291) and 70.3 percent from the free-throw line for 448 points, an average of 16.6 points per game. He pulled down 226 boards (8.4 per game) and dished out 43 assists.

In 2006-07, Thompson earned MAAC Defensive Player of the Year honors and was a second-team All-District III choice. He was a member of the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major All-American squad as he emerged as a dominant force on both ends of the court. He averaged 20.1 points per game, making 221-of-425 field goals (52.0 percent) and 176-of-243 shots from the charity stripe. He grabbed 312 rebounds (10.1 per game), blocked 67 shots and handed out 65 assists.

As a senior, Thompson continued to rank with the nation's elite in both rebounds and scoring. He ranked second nationally with an average of 12.1 rebounds per game and was 29th in the NCAA in scoring with a 20.4-point average. He shot 56.0 percent from the field and placed 18th nationally with an average of 2.7 blocked shots per game.

 

[Mr. S£im Citrus]

But why? because he averaged 16 and 13 against high schoolers. You say he was considered can't miss. Tell me why? What basis did this go on? Just wondering who and how they came to this conclusion because he averaged a double double in high school?

Well, for starters, Howard played for Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, which is considered one of the top prep schools for basketball these days, and impressed pro scouts enough for him to be the Number One draft pick in 2004. Jason Thompson, who graduated high school the same year as Howard, and could have gone pro that year, played for Lanape High School, and impressed pro scouts enough for him to be recruited by Rider.

You tell me why it's different?

 

[Kingfanpaul]

Well, for starters, Howard played for Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, which is considered one of the top prep schools for basketball these days, and impressed pro scouts enough for him to be the Number One draft pick in 2004. Jason Thompson, who graduated high school the same year as Howard, and could have gone pro that year, played for Lanape High School, and impressed pro scouts enough for him to be recruited by Rider.

But he was not just recruited by Rider. He was recruited by others but chose to go there instead of sit on the bench fresh year at UCLA.

 

[Jechtsphere]

introductory press conference is at 1 pm today, you can watch the stream at kings.com, just a heads up.

 

[Bricklayer]

One of the other things to remmeber is that the difference from big conference to little conference is much bigger amongst the bigs than the littles. There are simply more quality 6'1" to 6'4" players out there than there are quality seven footers. So to the degree you are either taking a SG from a small conference, or a PF/C, the PF/C actually has faced the greater difference in strength of competition. Doesn't mean that if Wilt Chamberlain plays for Rider he's still not Wilt. Just means that many players are going to look like Wilt when they have a nightly size and athleticism advanatage.

 

[Stonedrie]

One of the other things to remmeber is that the difference from big conference to little conference is much bigger amongst the bigs than the littles. There are simply more quality 6'1" to 6'4" players out there than there are quality seven footers. So to the degree you are either taking a SG from a small conference, or a PF/C, the PF/C actually has faced the greater difference in strength of competition. Doesn't mean that if Wilt Chamberlain plays for Rider he's still not Wilt. Just means that many players are going to look like Wilt when they have a nightly size and athleticism advanatage.

Point taken, but I think all players go through that risk. It is hard to say if he will be able to utilize his athleticism in the NBA the same way he did in college- where he always had either a size advantage or an athletic advantage.
But, I think you could've looked at Lebron James the same way. He is a freak of an athlete, and is able to be such the athlete against elite level players- in similar ways as he was in H.S. But, then look at Kwame Brown.

 

[VF21]

You know what I like most about this pick? He has people talking and excited again. To me, that's huge! I know one thing - I'm actually starting to look forward to next season already.

 

[Entity]

But he was not just recruited by Rider. He was recruited by others but chose to go there instead of sit on the bench fresh year at UCLA.

I see the point you are making but, it seems to go ignored by slim because it alters his agenda when making Rider look like a pick up team in Nebraska. Thats twice it has been posted I know you are waiting for a respone so I figured I would give you one.

Also he was recruited by Villinova but as a senior in High School he was only 6'7 playing PF. Nobody expected him to blossom to 6'11 and still maintain his ability. Well he did. Nets GM said his stock rose faster than oil futures and with each workout eyebrows were raised across the league.

 

[Warhawk]

You know what I like most about this pick? He has people talking and excited again. To me, that's huge! I know one thing - I'm actually starting to look forward to next season already.

Agreed. I am very excited to see Hawes and Thompson up front with Martin, Salmons, and Beno for significant amounts of time. I think that could be a pretty exciting team to watch.

 

[Entity]

Michael Beasly faced off against Jason Thompson. At the time Beasely was averaging 30pts 16.6 reb and 1.6 blks a game. How did he do against Thompson
13pts 10reb 0blks Thompson had 24pts 7reb and 4blks with 3ast and 2stls. Kind of throws the competition thing out the window huh? and Jason wasn't the only player doing anything in that game for Rider. His brother Ryan had 21pts and 13 reb himself

 

[Entity]

Why was Rondolph the BPA becuase Chad Ford said so?? or Jay?? Randolph played in conference that teams run 4 guards. the SEC has ZERO big men Hendrix was one of the best at 6'8 on an Alabama team that won like 6 games going against 4 guard teams.

 

[Jechtsphere]

You know what I like most about this pick? He has people talking and excited again. To me, that's huge! I know one thing - I'm actually starting to look forward to next season already.

Hell I can't wait until summer league to see Hawes and the rookies play

 

[GeraldWallace#3]

Speaking of Summer League, when is the first game?