Ausar Thompson has been overshadowed by his twin brother Amen at times but is finally starting to get the recognition he deserves for his defensive brilliance.
Zach Lowe put Thompson on his first-team All-Defense ballot (for now) in a recent episode of his podcast, undoing an egregious oversight from his last attempt a few weeks ago.
Lowe didn’t even have Thompson on the team at all in his last iteration, but said he had to move him onto the first team after watching more of the Pistons of late. Lowe had already rankled Pistons fans by throwing cold water on their playoff chances, so this somewhat redeems him.
Lowe agreed Thompson is the “definitive ball stopper” in the NBA, which is a good way to put it, as he and Cason Wallace are nightmares to even try and dribble against, as they seem to get their hands on everything.
For anyone who has paid attention, it’s clear that Thompson is one of the league’s best perimeter defenders and the engine of the Pistons defense, which is made even more important because of the easy offense it creates.
But I have my concerns that not everyone will be watching as closely as Zach Lowe.
Will Ausar Thompson get screwed out of 1st-team All Defense?
The Pistons have been one of the top three teams in the league all season but could very well get shut out of the awards.
Voters are already trying to talk themselves out of JB Bickerstaff for Coach of the Year with revisionist history about the expectations for the Pistons coming into the season.
Cade Cunningham won’t be eligible for All-NBA or MVP votes because he has failed to meet the stupid 65 game rule. Same goes for Isaiah Stewart on the All-Defensive team.
That leaves voters with Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson.
Jalen Duren might benefit from Cade’s absence, but Ausar isn’t getting as much love
If voters feel like they have to reward the Pistons for the season they’ve had, then Jalen Duren should be an obvious choice for the All-NBA team. He’s dominated with Cade Cunningham out and has made huge strides on both ends.
He’ll also get votes for Most Improved Player, though voters tend to be all over the place in their interpretation of that particular award.
Ausar Thompson is an obvious choice for All-Defense but doesn’t have the name recognition of some of the other mainstays on the team and also has the misfortune of competing against his twin brother, with the two often getting mistaken for one another.
It sounds stupid, but I wouldn’t be shocked if Amen gets a few of Ausar’s votes because some voters aren’t paying attention.
I don’t get too hung up on awards, and neither will the Pistons, as they’ve used disrespect as fuel all season, but it would also be a shame if such an amazing season wasn’t recognized by the wider NBA community.