The Detroit Pistons were understandably heartbroken to not win the 2023 NBA draft lottery and have the chance to draft Victor Wembanyama, but they might’ve lucked into the next best thing. The Pistons finished with the worst record in the NBA the season but fell all the way to the fifth pick in the draft. With that pick, they took Ausar Thompson, who is now looking like he might be the second best player from the draft class.
The Pistons’ silver lining might’ve been the best thing for them
Wemby is a certified freak of nature with the way that he moves at his listed height of 7‘4“. But the Pistons got a phenom of their own when they took Ausar Thompson, whose athleticism has taken the NBA by storm along with his twin brother Amen. The Pistons should even consider themselves lucky to fall all the way to fifth because the temptation to take Scoot Henderson or Brandon Miller at a higher pick would have been hard to resist.
Both Henderson and Miller were considered premier prospects after standout campaigns in the G-League Ignite and NCAA, respectively. Henderson even established himself with a great performance against Wemby’s French team Mets 92. Miller, on the other hand, was a First Team All-American as a true freshman and led Alabama to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.
The Pistons were probably initially saddened that they wouldn’t be able to draft either Henderson or Miller as a consolation prize for missing out on Wemby. But two years later, it seems pretty clear that Ausar Thompson was the superior pick. It’s too early to write off Henderson and Miller entirely, but so far neither of them has shown nearly the same promise as Ausar Thompson.
Thompson has firmly established himself as having the highest floor of the three players with his incredible defensive impact. And now that he’s coming into his own as an offensive player, thriving as a secondary attacker and playmaker, Thompson’s ceiling also looks higher than the players taken at two and three.
Ausar has also arguably outperformed his brother, who was taken with the fourth pick, this season. When they went head-to-head in the Pistons’ first win of the season, Ausar dominated with an aggressive 19 points compared to Amen’s 10. On the season, the two brothers have very similar overall stats, although Ausar has a noticeable edge in rebounding. Last season, Pistons fans would argue that the twins were on the same level talent-wise but Amen’s scoring aggression took him to another level. This season, Ausar has closed the aggression gap and equalized the playing field.
Ausar Thompson has been a perfect fit for the Pistons on the court, and is arguably their second best player. He’s a proven part of the Pistons’ young core and someone that they wouldn’t exchange for nearly any of the players selected before him.