Latest news with #AusarThompson
New York Times
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
WATCH: What is Jalen Brunson's basketball superpower? His brakes
Scroll down to watch my video explaining the key to Jalen Brunson's one-on-one brilliance despite his size. Jalen Brunson is rarely the fastest player on the court. He's often the shortest. He won't even lift for a mundane dunk — as The Athletic's Mike Vorkunov noted, Brunson's slam in Sunday's Game 3 was his first of the entire season. Advertisement Yet Brunson is also the reigning NBA Clutch Player of the Year and one of the most unstoppable one-on-one players in the game. So how does he do it? How does he create so much space even with five defenders constantly locked onto him, and especially in the most vital moments? As I explain in this video, it's not about how fast Brunson can sprint. It's about how fast he can stop. Brunson's best skill is his ability to slow down quickly. It's how he kills mismatches, especially in fourth quarters. Anyone is susceptible to his herky-jerky twitches. Just ask Ausar Thompson, who learned the lesson during the Knicks' first-round series win over the Detroit Pistons. The 22-year-old Thompson is up there with his twin brother Amen on the list of the NBA's most athletic players. He has six inches on Brunson, plus an eight-inch wingspan advantage. The Pistons wanted him on Brunson whenever possible during the series. But in Game 6, with the score tied in the closing seconds and the Knicks leading the series 3-2, none of that mattered. Brunson didn't try to drive by Thompson. Instead, the Knicks' guard stopped on a dime when crossing over, to the point that Thompson slid so far in the other direction that he was out of the baseline camera's frame. Brunson walked into a wide-open shot. Game, and series. No one plays with speeds or angles like Brunson does.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
NBA／湯普森雙胞胎擬轉籍牙買加 有望攜手鮑威爾出戰國際賽
火箭隊的湯普森（Amen Thompson）與效力活塞的弟弟湯普森（Ausar Thompson）兩雙胞胎兄弟近日展開申請牙買加國籍的程序，未來有望代表牙買加國家隊征戰國際賽場。由於兩人的父親具有牙買加血統，讓兩兄弟擁有申請該國國籍的資格。若入籍順利完成，兩人將能代表牙買加參加FIBA等國際賽事。 牙買加國家隊近年積極補強陣容，據報導，已成功爭取快艇隊得分後衛鮑威爾（Norman Powell）承諾加入，準備出戰未來FIBA賽事。除了鮑威爾外，牙買加也正在積極招募其他具牙買加血統的NBA球員，包括太陽隊中鋒理查茲（Nick Richards）、活塞隊內線史都華（Isaiah Stewart），以及灰狼隊前鋒米諾特（Josh Minott）。 若招募成果順利，牙買加隊有望成為中北美區一支不可忽視的新興強權。從具潛力新星到即戰力老將，牙買加正試圖打造具備深度與競爭力的國家隊陣容，在國際舞台上展現全新戰力輪廓。 Amen and Ausar Thompson plan to represent Jamaica in future FIBA and Olympic competitions, per @ dope. 🇯🇲 — Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) 2025年5月25日 Norman Powell has committed to representing Jamaica in the FIBA World Cup Pre-Qualifiers 🇯🇲🔥(h/t @BASKETBALLonX ) — NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) 2025年4月11日 更多udn報導 中職明星賽／宋晟睿呼籲象迷投其他隊也可以 學長笑答：你不錯喔！ 中職專欄／高中缺大物、旅外掛零 選秀度小年「大社球員」扮主角 MLB／首度實戰投打飆156公里 大谷翔平賞2K拉弓、搞笑開心 NBA／唐斯末節開無雙拯救尼克 布朗森關鍵進球逆轉溜馬
New York Times
13-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
What's next for Jazz after suffering worst-case scenario in NBA Draft Lottery?
In the weeks and days leading to Monday's NBA Draft Lottery, the Utah Jazz and their fans knew the worst-case scenario for the team with the league's worst record was the most likely possibility. In each of the last two seasons, the Detroit Pistons lost games without mercy, carried the best lottery odds into Chicago, and walked away with the No. 5 pick. In a Victor Wembanyama draft in 2023, the Pistons came away with Ausar Thompson. Advertisement Thompson is one of the best defenders in the NBA and has All-Star potential. But he's not the generational talent the Pistons wanted. It was a devastating day for Detroit's fan base. But two years later, the Pistons are one of the best young teams in the NBA. Monday night was difficult for the Jazz. Yes, they knew, prepared for, and in some ways even expected the worst case to come to fruition. But seeing the Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs and Philadelphia 76ers jump them from way back in the order was hard to deal with. Not getting a shot at Cooper Flagg, this year's generational level talent, or Dylan Harper, a dynamic consolation prize of a point guard and likely No. 2 pick, hurt Jazz fans in ways that haven't been seen since Gordon Hayward defected to the Boston Celtics in free agency. The Jazz, who went 17-65, lost more than 60 games in a season for the first time in franchise history. They went to creative depths to lose games with a roster that was too talented to lose that many games. It was painful for both the franchise and the fan base to sit through. So, that's where the pain comes from on Monday night. The average Jazz fan was asked to sit through a year like this just to miss the chance to cheer for Flagg or Harper. In reality, Utah is going to draft a good player. Rutgers wing Ace Bailey could be available. Tre Johnson, the shooting guard from Texas, may be available. Baylor guard VJ Edgecombe, or even someone like Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears, may be available. All are nice talents. In the right system, with the right opportunities, someone from that group is likely to emerge as an All-Star or even an All-NBA-level player. But this Jazz fan base needed someone to galvanize it, especially after watching the Jazz trade away Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. Mitchell has emerged as one of the best players in the league, and Gobert may have a chance at an elusive NBA title. Utah is in the thick of the rebuild, which is fine. What isn't fine is that the Jazz are still looking for a player to build around. It isn't going to be Keyonte George. Taylor Hendricks, provided he comes back healthy from his broken leg, has a chance to be a great role player. But he won't be a leading guy. Cody Williams is young and has a long way to go in his development. But he had a concerning rookie season. Advertisement Monday was about potentially having the chance to draft the franchise-level player. So, now what? Where do the Jazz go from this point? The best thing, the smart thing, is to use the No. 5 pick and take the best player on the board. Then have the same kind of season again in 2025-26. Then try their luck again in the 2026 lottery. There are a few things that would be different in this scenario. With Darryn Peterson, AJ Dybantsa and Cameron Boozer, the 2026 draft has three potential franchise-level talents, while the 2025 draft has two. So, the odds could be more in Utah's favor. Secondly, the 2026 draft is deeper at the top, which means the player at No. 5 in 2026, possibly someone like Karim López, is going to potentially be better than whoever the Jazz walk away with in June. Even if this sounds a bit contradictory, I believe the Jazz will walk away with a good player in June. I like Johnson. I like Edgecombe. But if you lose 65 games, those names don't create significant excitement. I think the Jazz fan base needs some juice. They need to see a level of hope. But that was dashed a bit on Monday night. That's the difficult part of falling to No. 5. The question next season is whether the Jazz decision makers want to go through another 60-loss season. It took a toll on the current roster. NBA players are competitors. They want to win. These are players with a limited professional shelf life and a limited window to make money and leave a legacy. It's hard to go through a single season where the goal is to accrue as many ping pong balls as possible. It would be asking a lot for the players and the fans to go through another season of the same thing. The other option is to fill out a roster to be as competitive as possible. That would almost certainly mean hitting the free agency or trade market in search of a veteran point guard capable of running the team. The downside is this: Utah's first-round pick next season is owed to (you guessed it) the Oklahoma City Thunder, with top-eight protection. Should the Jazz win too many games, that pick would likely be conveyed to the Thunder. Advertisement Does neither option sound particularly appealing? It's the plight of the small-market team in the NBA. The margin for error isn't just small, it's almost non-existent. You need to be as perfect as Denzel Washington told his football team it had to be in the movie 'Remember the Titans.' But you also have to have some luck. The San Antonio Spurs weren't perfect in every move they made over the last five years. But they moved up in the 2023 lottery, which got them Wembanyama. They moved up in the 2024 lottery, which got them Stephon Castle. Their third consecutive move up in this, the 2025 lottery, will give them the flexibility to draft Harper or become a trade team. Utah, so far, hasn't had that kind of lottery luck. The Jazz have never won the lottery. And on Monday night, they dropped four spots. So they have to take matters into their own hands. Maybe that means trying to use assets to move up. Maybe that means making the perfect selection at No. 5, and finding a franchise-level guy who wasn't expected to be one. Whatever it is, the Jazz must find a way to move past Monday's disappointment and make meaningful strides in their current rebuild. They are excited about the pool of players they get to pick from. And they still have a second first-round pick from the Minnesota Timberwolves at No. 21, which means they will work out a wide range of players. Monday night is over. Utah knows what hand it has been dealt. Now, the real work begins. (Photo of NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum: Melissa Tamez / NBAE via Getty Images)
New York Post
02-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
Malik Beasley continues making big claims even after being eliminated
Malik Beasley had a lot to say in the Pistons' first-round series against the Knicks, and it culminated in him dropping a pass out of bounds just before he had a chance to tie up Game 6. Well, even after his brutal miscue that sealed Detroit's season-ending loss in the 4-2 series against New York, he's still making some bold claims. '[Ausar Thompson] was pissed,' Beasley said postgame after the Knicks eliminated the Pistons. 'He is the best defender in the world. He felt like he should've got a stop on that last possession.' Advertisement 3 Malik Beasley mishandles a pass in the final moments of the Pistons' loss to the Knicks. Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images He then went on to toot his own horn, making an even more audacious claim. 'I'm the best shooter in the world,' Beasley said. 'I feel like I should've [gotten a shot off] on that last possession.' Advertisement Beasley's case comes from the fact that he led the league in total three-pointers through the final day of the regular season before Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards drilled seven threes on 18 attempts to surpass Beasley, 320 to 319. Beasley and Edwards were two of just five players to ever make 300 threes in a season. But Knicks fans will laugh in the face of Beasley's comments about himself as he struggled mightily with his three-point shot for much of the series. Advertisement The 28-year-old shot just 20-of-59 from deep through the six games — that 33.9% rate was down from his regular season posting of 41.6%, which was a career high. Also, there's a certain three-point sniper named Stephen Curry that may have something to say about the world's-best-shooter title. 3 Ausar Thompson was Jalen Brunson's primary defender for much of the Pistons-Knicks series. Getty Images As for Beasley's comments surrounding the 22-year-old Thompson, they hold some weight as the youngster is a defensive phenom who did a respectable job on perhaps the best point guard in the league in the series. Advertisement 'That dude was tough to play against. He's big time,' Brunson even said about Thompson's defense after the series. 'And I told him straight to his face after the series, he made me work. I've got a lot of respect for him.' But again, Knicks fans surely can't help but scoff at Beasley's comments, considering how Jalen Brunson practically shook Thompson to the Palace of Auburn Hills with the amount of separation his dribble moves created on his series-winning three-pointer. 3 Jalen Brunson used a killer move to get massive separation from Ausar Thompson for the game-winning three. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post Beasley was with Detroit this season on just a one-year deal, making him one of the greatest bang-for-your-buck signings of the season. He's shown nothing but love for Detroit and a want to return to the team moving forward, but the 'best shooter in the world' could field quite the pay day from other teams this summer.
New York Post
02-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
Jalen Brunson lifts Knicks into second round with 3-point dagger against Pistons
The Knicks survived … barely. Jalen Brunson's 3-pointer with 4.3 seconds left in the fourth quarter sent the Knicks into the second round of the NBA playoffs with a 116-113 win over the Pistons in Game 6 on Thursday night in Detroit. Ausar Thompson #9 of the Detroit Pistons defends against Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter in Game Six of the Eastern Conference First Round NBA Playoffs at Little Caesars Arena on May 01, 2025 in Detroit, Michigan. Getty Images New York coughed up a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter but held on for the win.
