Amen Thompson Rumors

Varun Shankar: Amen Thompson’s IG story

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Appearing on the Buckets Don't Stop podcast, the veteran guard claimed he sees himself as a perfect fit and a crucial piece for the Houston Rockets. "I'd love to go to Rockets," Dinwiddie said. "I'd love to go to Rockets. One of my best NBA friends, Dorian Finney-Smith, is on the Rockets. And I think, the [Fred] VanVleet injury really hurt them. I think they have all the makings of having that championship-type team. "They have young talent in [Jabari] Smith Jr. and [Amen] Thompson. They got a great post up threat and creator in [Alperen] Sengun. You got an all-time, all-world scorer in [Kevin Durant]. And I think [I'm] a guard that can go in there, catch and shoot off of Sengun and KD, set the table in terms of just taking some of the thought process of, setting the table in terms of KD and Sengun just letting them score.

BasketNews

Houston, meanwhile, wanted Brooks to influence its young core. The Rockets banked that Brooks' toughness and work ethic would set the tone, alongside fellow free agent acquisition Fred VanVleet and recently hired head coach Ime Udoka, as the franchise's rebuild entered what owner Tilman Fertitta termed as "Phase II." After dwelling in or near the West cellar the previous three years, the Rockets made a leap to 41-41 in 2023-24 and 52-30 last season. Brooks embraced his role as a mentor and defensive menace, accepting that he was usually the fifth offensive option in Houston's starting lineup. "He helped change the culture over here," said Rockets guard Amen Thompson, a rising star who was a rookie when Brooks arrived in Houston. "I feel like Houston loves him. They embrace him and that's my guy. That's like a big brother to me."

ESPN

Michael Shapiro: FINAL: Rockets 119, Lakers 96. Houston salvages road trip w/Christmas win. 26 pts for Amen Thompson. 25 pts for @KDTrey5 . Durant now 2–3 vs. LeBron on Christmas (other win in 2017). Durant in the tunnel postgame: “Best present you could ask for right there.”

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Kevin Durant's arrival in Houston raised expectations, but they likely won't be met without the continued growth of Thompson and Sengun. The young duo, 22 and 23, respectively, has played the most minutes this season together of any Rockets pair, per ESPN Research. They've also formed a budding chemistry that threatens to take the league by storm for years to come. "One of the best things about KD is he wants the young guys to lead," Thompson said. "He doesn't want us to just look for him. He tells me all the time, 'You can't play basketball like that. You've got to go do what you've got to do.' So, sometimes KD would just go and let me and Alpi do what we've got to do. When it's KD's time, he'll tell you."

ESPN

Following the example set by Durant certainly helps. "The first time I saw KD work out, I thought I worked hard," Thompson said. "He's telling me 'Go game speed [from the] first rep.' I thought I was going game speed. But there are levels to it. For a guy to be as good as he is and as skilled as he is, he works so efficiently and so hard. I've been watching him my whole life. I never thought I was going to be on a team with him. I didn't know he was [still] going to be playing. So, I feel like it's just full circle seeing him kill on TV, and now I get to see it in real life."

ESPN

"I just started learning how to cut off of Alperen Sengun," Thompson said. "He started pulling me to the side at shootaround [to tell me to] do this and that. That's [been since] my rookie year. We talk about it all the time, go to dinner, talk about stuff we could do." Durant calls the budding chemistry between Thompson and Sengun "incredible." Sengun ranks as one of two players in the NBA averaging at least 23 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists, according to ESPN Research, joining Nikola Jokic. Sengun is on pace to register career highs in points per game (23.5), assists (7.1) and 3-point field goal percentage (35%).

ESPN

These latest moves have been additive, with the Rockets having built this post-James Harden era core by way of the draft (Alperen Şengün at No. 16 in 2021, Jabari Smith Jr. third in 2022, Tari Eason 17th in 2022, Amen Thompson fourth in 2023, Reed Sheppard third in 2024). “They have drafted well, built a deep team in a tough Western Conference while managing tax aprons,” said one executive who voted the Rockets second. “(They) hired a good coach and built an overall team identity, then added KD for cheap. “From where they were only a few years ago, they have done a good job turning it around.” Said another, who also voted the Rockets second: “High-end talent, a willingness to be bold, (and) good asset management.” — Sam Amick

New York Times

As of Monday, Houston had recovered 40.8 percent of its own missed shots, a rate that would annihilate the previous single-season record, which dates back to 1996, when the NBA began compiling reliable play-by-play data. But the Rockets should be even better — so says Udoka. Houston is overflowing with size, regularly leaning on lineups where the shrimp is 6-foot-7 Amen Thompson, who lives for physicality. A bunch of pseudo 7-footers surround him. And Udoka has encouraged the group to crash the offensive glass even more than it has.

New York Times

But in the back of Stone’s mind, he believed Thompson could play point guard in a pinch if needed. “He’s been playing point guard his whole life. When I looked back at his AAU footage, he was on the ball,” Stone said. “We always had him as a 1 [point guard]. That was the super thing about Amen: he’s a really good basketball player.” Stone was correct. Amen’s older brother, Troy Thompson Jr., told Andscape that Amen and twin brother Ausar, a Detroit Pistons forward, played point guard in youth basketball in the Oakland, California, area.

Andscape

“I love watching those type of guys to see how they attack when given the opportunity,” Thompson told Andscape. “I also like how they can command the floor. I’ve been a LeBron, Westbrook and John Wall fan. And then I started watching Rondo and was like, ‘Yo, this man is nice.’ “I knew he was nice, but I didn’t know he was that nice,” he continued his praise for Rondo, who played in the NBA from 2006 to 2022. “But I started watching a lot of him because of the way he impacts the game while they are letting him shoot, but he still gets to where he wants and distributes and grabs 20 rebounds at 6-foot-2.”

Andscape

“It was a heartbreaker for sure because you know how much Fred can bring to the team with his leadership and his skills,” Thompson said. “But at the same time, it’s a next-man-up kind of thing. He wouldn’t want anyone to sulk off of him, so it’s the next man up. [Udoka] just told me, ‘You were going to get more on-ball reps anyway, but now you and Reed’s reps are going to be boosted.’ I was just excited for the opportunity.”

Andscape

NBA Communications: Other nominees... West: Luguentz Dort and Chet Holmgren (OKC), and Amen Thompson (HOU) East: Bam Adebayo (MIA), Dyson Daniels (ATL), Evan Mobley (CLE) and Isaiah Stewart (DET)

Twitter

Vanessa Richardson: Steven Adams is available for the Rockets today vs Jazz. Rockets starters today: Reed Sheppard, Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr, Kevin Durant, Alperen Sengun

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