LeBron James was full of praise for Amen and Ausar Thompson after the Los Angeles Lakers lost 119-115 to the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on Sunday. When discussing what went wrong for the Lakers postgame, James gave a shout-out to Amen.
“I thought the Thompson twin was amazing, just with his energy and effort,” James said.”
James was later informed about Lakers head coach JJ Redick stating that Thompson was among the top 1% of athletes in the NBA and didn’t disagree.
“I mean you seen his brother? … I think Cade Cunningham said it best,” James stated. “He said, ‘They different. They ain’t like the rest of us.’ I’ve been able to do some things in my career and those two guys, man, they’re just pure athleticism. They love the game, and you love to see that.”
(starts at 0:28 mark):
LeBron on the rebound discrepancy, trying to call a timeout on the inbounds play, The Thompson brothers' athleticism, and adjusting in the second half: pic.twitter.com/qTz4YsI68e
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) January 6, 2025
That’s something coming from one of the most athletic players the NBA has ever seen. It speaks to just how freakishly athletic the Thompson twins are.
Everyone in the league knew they were special too, which was why Amen was selected with the fourth pick of the 2023 NBA Draft by the Rockets and Ausar with the fifth by the Detroit Pistons. They are the first set of brothers to be selected in the top five in the same year and it certainly wasn’t a mistake to pick them that high.
Amen was excellent against the Lakers on Sunday, as he finished with 23 points (11-19 FG), 16 rebounds, three assists, and one steal. While the 21-year-old made a fair few incredible plays, there was one that stood out.
"CAN I GET A AMEN!"
Amen Thompson catches the airball and throws it down in the Rockets win over the Lakers. He finished with 23 points & a career-high 16 rebounds in his return from suspension. pic.twitter.com/0AdvMOOCMG
— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) January 6, 2025
James felt that this was a huge play and it sure was considering the circumstances. The Lakers would have had a chance to take the lead on the next possession had they secured the ball but Thompson ensured that wouldn’t happen.
Amen is now averaging 12.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.1 blocks per game in 2024-25. He has been ridiculously good on defense, with StatMamba on X revealing he has held opponents to 37.1% shooting from the field this season, the lowest in the NBA.
While Amen has been making waves, Ausar hasn’t quite made the same kind of splash for the Pistons. It’s quite understandable, though, as he had to spend months on the sidelines due to a blood clot issue. It came up in March 2024 and he was only cleared to play in November.
Ausar is now averaging 7.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.5 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game for the Pistons in 2024-25. He has impressed in spurts and should keep improving as he spends more time on the court.
Someone who won’t be improving much moving forward is James. The 40-year-old isn’t going to be hanging around for too much longer but is still playing at a very high level.
James is averaging 24.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, 8.9 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game for the Lakers in 2024-25. The 20-time All-Star just missed out on a triple-double against the Rockets by one assist and, remarkably, he can still play that well in his 22nd season.
James will be in action next against the Dallas Mavericks, as the Lakers face off against them at American Airlines Center on Tuesday at 7:30 PM ET.
Thank you for being a valued reader of Fadeaway World. If you liked this article, please consider following us on Google News. We really appreciate your support.
