Houston's "untouchable" wing possesses elite defensive tools, but finding his historical blueprint remains difficult. From Andre Iguodala to Kawhi Leonard, we analyze which superstars mirror his unique ceiling.
The Houston Rockets are hoping to sign Amen Thompson to a long-term contract after recently revealing how much they value him, per HoopsHype. Considering he’s viewed as “nearly untouchable” by teams around the league, you’d expect him to have some pretty high potential.
I could never deny that potential either, but how good does Houston’s front office think he’ll be? He’s long, athletic, and already one of the league's best defenders. What’s the ceiling, though?
I don’t personally have a good grasp of what he’d look like as a superstar. What would he have to do to get there? What other players in NBA history can we look at for a possible blueprint?
Even going back before he even got drafted, some of the main comparisons were a bigger Ja Morant, or a more athletic Ben Simmons. While I understand they’re all below average shooters, I also think Morant and Simmons were always much better playmakers. They have that natural gift more than Thompson.
A “pass-first” Russell Westbrook always seemed odd too, considering the former MVP had already averaged multiple double-digit assists seasons up to that point. He’s currently fifth in all-time assists, per NBA Stats.
Seeing Amen Thompson’s experience running point guard last season should put all of those comparisons to bed for the time being. He's more of a wing, so take a jumbo-sized Rajon Rondo off of the list too.
As far as wings go, I do like the Andre Iguodala comparisons. At 6’6” with a 6’11” wingspan, Amen Thompson has an inch on him in each category, but Iggy was incredibly athletic in his youth as well. They both use that length and athleticism well on the defensive end.
It felt like Iguodala improved on his three point shot a lot throughout his career, but the stats don’t actually reflect that. He shot 33.1-percent on 1.7 attempts as a rookie, and 33.0-percent on 2.7 attempts throughout his entire 19-year career. He didn’t shoot below 30-percent until much later in his career, though, per Basketball-Reference.
Even with him being a solid candidate to make the Hall of Fame, I think the Rockets are aiming for something higher than a one-time All-Star. Kawhi Leonard would certainly be the ideal outcome with his two Finals MVP’s, Defensive Player of the Year, seven All-Star appearances, and several All-NBA and All-Defensive teams.
Similarly to Iguodala, though, Leonard didn’t make as big of improvements on his shooting as you might think. He wasn’t a shooter in college, but still managed to make 37.6-percent of his 1.7 threes per game as a rookie, per Basketball-Reference.
He wasn’t missing wide open “dare” shots like Amen Thompson, but there’s reason to believe Thompson can improve. Just last month, the Rockets brought in Chip Engelland, who’s also known as “The Shot Doctor”. He’s credited with improving Kawhi’s shot after getting drafted, as covered on Roundtable, so the hope is he’ll have the same impact in Houston.
I’m not sure what Thompson’s ceiling will be if he doesn’t start to progress sooner rather than later, though. He’s a worse playmaker than other non-shooting guards, and a much worse shooter than the two-way wings. It’s hard to see a clear path to superstardom on his current trajectory, so I hope we start to see the path this season.
