The Pistons are relying on Ausar Thompson to be more aggressive on offense this season and he’s already taking the right steps, based on his media day presser. Thompson stressed his newfound confidence in his jump shot, most highlighted by the quote:
“There’s days where I may miss but the biggest thing is when I miss, it’s the mindset you go into the next shot with.”
Thompson needs to be confident in his shot
Eventually, the Pistons will need Thompson to shoot confidently and effectively from outside, especially if they continue ahead without a floor-spacing center. A jump from Thompson in the shooting department should help the Pistons offense function like a proper modern one, while still maintaining their other strengths.
But his improvement won’t come all at once. After all, he only shot 24 threes and made 6 of them last season. There’s a long way to go from that to being an outside threat that defenses respect. The path towards credible shooting will be full of misses and Thompson needs steadfast confidence to get through rough patches.
At the very least, the Pistons should be happy to hear Thompson adamant that he’ll be trying more outside shots this season. In the past, he’s been too shy about shooting to ever get into a rhythm or get a proper assessment of his development. Even if he doesn’t have the best results right away, his process of gaining confidence will be the most important change to start the season.
Shooting will make everything easier for Ausar
We’ve talked at length this offseason about how Ausar needs to be more assertive offensively, but that can often take a toll on a player’s overall energy. Guys in his position have seen a decline in defense as they’ve ramped up their offensive workload. But more shooting should help solve that problem.
If Ausar’s offensive growth involves taking more shots when he’s open, he’ll be able to increase his offensive impact even without exerting a ton of energy on those plays. Rather than driving into the teeth of a prepared defense and trying to make a play, he can just rise up for a less taxing jumper. That should save his legs for defense and keep him fresh late into games.
Ausar’s clear and obvious next step is more offensive aggression, but his final evolution should have improved efficiency too. By building confidence in his shot, he can accomplish the short term goal and also lay a foundation to the eventual promised land. Hopefully Ausar lives up to his media day confidence throughout the season and keeps chipping away at his jumper even when the misses come in actual games.
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