Ausar Thompson recently spoke about the difficulties of defending Cade Cunningham, which he knows first-hand from trying to stop him in practice. These behind-the-scenes challenges are going to make Ausar Thompson a better defender.
Ausar Thompson and his twin brother Amen talked about their respective teammates on a recent episode of The Young Man and the Three podcast, with Ausar giving high praise to his All-NBA teammate, saying he’s much bigger and stronger than people give him credit for.
He was talking about playing one on one against Cunningham, a routine that will sharpen and expand Ausar’s skills and help him reach his lofty goal of being the best defender in the NBA.
Ausar Thompson on learning from Cade Cunningham
Ausar spoke at length at what it is like to try and stop Cunningham, who had his way with the “skinnier” Thompson as he was ramping back up from missing time due to blood clots.
He said that Cunningham had an answer for every type of defense, which forced Ausar to “study and learn every way to stop him.”
We all know Cunningham helps his teammates in myriad ways, but fans are not privy to the battles that go on in practice, where teammates are going against each other, honing their skills against players who know their games inside and out.
It not only helps a guy like Ausar develop different tactics to take on elite offensive players, but forces Cade to play against one of the toughest defenders in the league, which he’ll have to do on a nightly basis as the focal point of the opposition’s defense.
Thompson is often going to be asked to defend bigger stronger players that try to attack him in a variety of ways, from facing up at the 3-point line to backing him down in the post. Cunningham does all of these things and more, so defending him in practice gives Ausar a preview of just about every type of attack he’ll face.
We talk a lot about Ausar’s alien athleticism, but he’s also a student of the game, and studying a guy like Cade can only be beneficial to his overall growth as a defender.
Thompson will enter next season as a stronger player after his first full offseason, and my guess is that Cade Cunningham won’t find it so easy to back him down in practice. The two are going to sharpen each other and the battles we don’t see will be a big part of their respective development.