Former Two-Time All-Star Still Remains An Unrestricted Free Agent
He may only be listed at 5-foot-9, but would you believe me when I said that Isaiah Thomas, who was the last pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, finished inside the Top-5 of the 2016-17 NBA MVP voting?
Once one of the league’s best scorers and an All-Star, starting point guard, Thomas now finds himself with one foot out the door in the NBA, just looking for a team to give him another chance.
Thomas, 33, was as dominant as they came when he was with the Boston Celtics from 2015-2017, but a hip injury really threw his career off.
Playing through this injury in 2017, the veteran guard was diagnosed with a right femoral-acetabular impingement with a labral tear during the postseason, which resulted in offseason surgery.
Isaiah Thomas was never the same after this surgery and teams have been very unwilling to give him another chance to prove what he can do. Maybe some teams are concerned about his size in today's league, but this was a concern back in the day too and Thomas did nothing but silence his critics.
Since this injury and being traded from the Boston Celtics to the Cleveland Cavaliers following the 2016-17 season, Thomas has played for seven different teams, failing to eclipse more than 40 games in a single season.
Still unsigned in free agency this offseason, there truly is no reason that Isaiah Thomas should not be on an NBA roster. To be perfectly fair, he could have absolutely had a positive impact coming off the bench for the Celtics in the NBA Finals this past season!
Thomas is a world-class athlete, he is an electrifying scorer, he is a fan-favorite and he may just be one of the most humble guys in the entire NBA. Every organization should want a character like this in their locker room for their young core to learn from at the very least, which is why Isaiah Thomas deserves another chance in the NBA.
Now an 11-year NBA veteran, Thomas has played for the Sacramento Kings, Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns, Washington Wizards, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks and most recently, the Charlotte Hornets.
With the Hornets this past season, Isaiah Thomas averaged 8.3 points per game and shot 43.3% from the floor, 39.7% from three-point range in 17 total games.
