Cleveland Cavaliers: Why Tristan Thompson Will Be A Reliable Starter For The Next Decade
By John Hugar
Tristan Thompson (13) of the Cleveland Cavaliers has an extremely bright future in the NBA. (Photo by Erik Drost/Flickr.com)
Since being selected fourth overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, Tristan Thompson has been something of an afterthought. Kyrie Irving, who the Cavs selected with the first pick overall, has received all the media attention in Cleveland and as the Cavaliers work towards becoming a respectable team again, many see their improvement as being all Irving’s work, without giving a great deal of credit to the other young players making strides.
But as anyone paying close attention can tell you, Thompson is an extremely talented player. Some thought it was a bit of a reach for the Cavs to take him fourth overall, but in two years in the league, he has found his way into the starting lineup and become one of the better young power forwards in the league. While Irving is still everyone’s main focus, the mainstream media is gradually figuring out what Thompson brings to the table, as this New York Times piece indicates.
In Thompson’s first season in the league, he struggled offensively. Thompson shot just .439 from the field in his rookie, which is fairly low for a power forward. As he struggled to find his way on the offensive end, the fear that Thompson would be a bust persisted in Cleveland. In his second year, however, Thompson would make a huge leap with regards to his offensive game. He shot .498 from the field, while increasing his points per game from 8.2 to 11.7. Thompson has developed a smoother offensive game and he appears to have adjusted to the advanced speed of the NBA level. After being something of a bystander in his rookie season, Thompson has begun to take on a far more active role in the Cavaliers offense.
| Season | Age | Tm | Lg | Pos | G | GS | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | FT | FTA | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-12 | 20 | CLE | NBA | PF | 60 | 25 | 23.7 | 3.2 | 7.4 | .439 | 0.0 | 0.0 | .000 | 1.8 | 3.2 | .552 | 3.1 | 3.4 | 6.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 8.2 |
| 2012-13 | 21 | CLE | NBA | PF | 82 | 82 | 31.3 | 4.8 | 9.7 | .488 | 0.0 | 0.0 | .000 | 2.2 | 3.5 | .608 | 3.7 | 5.7 | 9.4 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 2.9 | 11.7 |
| Career | NBA | 142 | 107 | 28.1 | 4.1 | 8.7 | .471 | 0.0 | 0.0 | .000 | 2.0 | 3.4 | .586 | 3.5 | 4.7 | 8.2 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 10.2 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 5/3/2013.
One of the biggest skills Thompson brings to the table is his excellent rebounding. In his first two years, he’s managed to bring down 10.5 boards per 36 minutes. This skill became especially valuable after the injuries to Anderson Varejao in each of the past two seasons. Varejao is one of the best rebounders in the NBA and the Cavaliers needed someone to pick up the slack. Thompson was more than capable of that. It would be interesting to see what would happen if Thompson and Varejao were able spend more time on the court together; they are both among the best rebounders in the league and if they w ere able to work together in the post, the Cavaliers could become one of the best rebounding teams in the league.
In any event, Thompson is a very talented player and he will be a starting power forward for a long time. He makes smart plays on offense and he is excellent at pulling down rebounds. As Thompson continues to hone his skills, it would not be shocking to see him play an expanded role in the offense. At this point, everyone knows that Thompson is capable offensive player and it would be smart to give him more touches and perhaps have him do more work in the pick-and-roll with Kyrie Irving. However they decide to use him, though, the Cavaliers have a very valuable player in Thompson. When they find themselves in the playoffs again, he will likely have played a big role in getting them there.