Philadelphia 76ers: 2014-15 Will Be Breakout Year For Hollis Thompson

Amidst a Philadelphia 76ers roster that, in large, is littered with guys who would fail to ever garner any notable attention throughout the majority of the NBA’s other 29 franchises, there’s a guy entering his second year as a pro who could prove to become a diamond in the extreme rough for the Sixers as Tank 2.0 grows nearer.

During his first season with Philadelphia, Hollis Thompson averaged six points per game, which, at first glance is a statistic that would make most consider a guy with such numbers to not have much value to a team. After playing in 77 games on the season, Thompson was third on the team with most game appearances, behind only Thaddeus Young and James Anderson, who are both out of Philly now. This led to an average of 22.6 minutes per game, which is also good for third on the team out of the remaining roster.

But anybody could assume a significant amount of time on the court and still remain as the same average role player on a bottom-feeding team. Where Thompson’s worth came was in his efficiency as a shooter on a team that desperately lacked any consistent touch outside of the paint.

On the season, Thompson shot 46 percent from the field, including a 2-point field goal percentage of 50, along with the ability to knock down perimeter shots above a 40 percent clip. These numbers left Thompson among the top handful in each category.

But none of these numbers matter because he still only racked up six points per game, right?

Wrong.

I don’t want to go as far as to say Thompson could become that dominant scorer the Sixers seek on the perimeter or anything, but for his biggest issue being aggressiveness during what was only his first season in the NBA, there should be much reason to believe Thompson can and will get much, much better.

Thompson only attempted 372 shots last season, which equals out to a passive 4.8 looks per game. Compare that to Michael Carter-Williams 15.1 attempts per game and his numbers in each of the shooting percentage categories I mentioned for MCW were all short of the averages Thompson reached last season. In fact, Thompson had a higher adjusted field goal percentage that than all but three players on last season’s roster; Byron Mullins, Jarvis Varnado and Adonis Thomas.

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This goes to show the extreme efficiency Thompson had as a rookie, despite never really capitalizing on his noticeable proficiency. For example, the most shots Thompson attempted in a single game last season was 10, and he did that only once.

Not exactly the aggressiveness you look for in a shooting guard, much less one who is the favorite to start in 2014-15.

But 2014-15 will be a season in which Thompson’s understanding of the NBA game and comfort in head coach Brett Brown’s offense will translate to an increase in offensive production. There will undoubtedly be more looks coming his way as he will be inserted into the starting lineup right out of the gates and with Young, Spencer Hawes and Evan Turner out of town from game one, this leaves far less options offensively and could allow Thompson to become one of the primary shot takers, alongside MCW, Tony Wroten and Nerlens Noel.

Then, of course, the challenge from here is going to be the task of trying to keep up that high proficiency as a shooter once he begins to see a significantly increased amount of looks from the field.

If there were ever a season for Thompson to really take advantage of the opportunity to show his worth, it’s the one that he’s only weeks away from. This is especially so considering his contract isn’t guaranteed from this point on and to be one of the few guys on the roster with quality game experience, Thompson will relish this opportunity to remain on the court more and become a larger target for Carter-Williams.

I’ll go ahead and set the standard for Thompson at 11 points per game, while still shooting better than 40 percent. For a team that arguably has only a select handful of guys who will still be on the roster in two seasons, this could be the stretch that ensures Thompson’s future in Philly and ultimately, allows him to establish himself as a valued member of a franchise that is looking to build the team of the future.