Amen Thompson Discusses The Key Drivers Of His NBA Development

Houston Rockets second-year standout Amen Thompson sat down with Draft Digest to discuss his development from top-four pick to rising NBA star.

Feb 4, 2025; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Houston Rockets forward Amen Thompson (1) dribbles in front of Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton (33) during the first quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Amen Thompson has emerged as a burgeoning star for the Houston Rockets this season. He flashed glimpses of brilliance throughout his All-Rookie campaign, but a year later, the 22-year-old has solidified himself as a key starter for the 34-21 Rockets. Thompson’s game is best defined by his unmatched athletic traits. Standing at 6-foot-6 with a 7-foot wingspan, the Bay Area native sets himself apart with his movement skills. With his astounding speed, leaping, flexibility, quickness, and more, many see Thompson as the single best athlete in the NBA. 

Thompson recently spoke with Draft Digest, giving insight into his path to being one of the most promising young stars in the league and what's ahead.

Amen Thompson’s Rise To Prominence

Feb 16, 2025; San Francisco, CA, USA; Candace's Rising Stars guard Amen Thompson (1) of the Houston Rockets shoots against Shaq’s OGs during the 2025 NBA All Star Game at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Ezra Shaw-Pool Photo via Imagn Images / Ezra Shaw-Pool Photo via Imagn Images

Amen Thompson is a one-of-a-kind athleticism was evident during the 2023 NBA Draft cycle, but some questioned how effectively he could apply it as he transitioned from Overtime Elite to the NBA. While he was widely recognized as a potent transition scorer, skeptics raised concerns about his half-court effectiveness and offensive versatility. These doubts didn’t deter teams from valuing Thompson as a top prospect, but they contributed to his slide past the second and third overall picks. 

Two years later, many of those concerns have been put to rest. Thompson has showcased immense development, already a high-level starter for a playoff-caliber team, with many projecting superstardom in his future. While it might seem expected for a top-four pick to pan out, countless top prospects never find NBA footing. Thompson has avoided this plateau by strategically building his game around relentless rim-attacking, downhill playmaking, smart positioning, and defensive dominance, to fully maximize his athletic tools. In his conversation with Draft Digest, Thompson broke down the key factors behind his growth, providing sharp insight into how draft prospects can overcome weaknesses by building around their strengths and studying others. 

Amen Thompson Sits Down With Draft Digest

Feb 8, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Amen Thompson (1) in action during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Houston Rockets at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

To open his All-Star weekend conversation with Draft Digest, Thompson credited his early passion for watching the game as a key catalyst for his development. “My dad would make me watch [games] every night, so I was a student of the game early on,” he said.

Specifically, he pinpointed two of the greatest slashers of all time, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, as the players he most closely emulated growing up given they're both big guards, referencing their basketball IQ as the foundation of how they maximized their impact as physically imposing ball handlers. From watching them, he learned the importance of getting to the cup and not settling for threes.

Thompson's athleticism truly rivals that of Wade and James, but it's the lessons he's absorbed from their downhill playmaking, offensive pacing, and strategic positioning that has sharpened his offensive impact. This season, he’s taken 57% of his shots at the rim, a frequency ranking in the 97th percentile among wings according to Cleaning the Glass. On the other hand, just 11% of his shots come from three, which ranks in the 0th percentile. Given his impressive 71% shooting at the rim and subpar 27% shooting from beyond the arc, this interior-focused shot selection has been crucial for Thompson, especially in the half-court, where he excels as both a driver and play finisher.

This emphasis on attacking the rim, combined with the lessons he learned about facilitation and positioning from Wade and James, have been a key driver of Thompson’s offensive success since joining Houston’s starting lineup. In these 20 games, he’s averaged 16.5 points and 5.4 assists while grabbing 3.1 of his 9.7 rebounds per game on the offensive end. 

Despite this offensive success, Thompson has been most impactful on the defensive end of the ball. This season, he has made a compelling NBA All-Defensive Team case as arguably the league’s most impactful perimeter defender. His movement skills, reaction speed, and length make him a stout force at the point of attack as he excels at staying connected to his assignments. Off the ball, he uses his ground coverage and leaping ability to disrupt passing lanes and protect the rim, averaging 2.0 steals and 1.6 blocks per game over his last 20 outings.

While he does most of his defensive work on the perimeter, he also gets back to clean the boards, averaging 6.6 defensive rebounds during this stretch. When speaking about his defensive development since entering the league, Thompson mentioned his versatility.

“I’ve always been a defender since I was young, my dad always stressed that. But I’m just taking it to the next level. Getting to the league, I’ve realized I can guard anybody and compete with anybody," Thompson told Draft Digest.

Thompson’s comments underscore the critical role confidence plays in an NBA player’s development. His athletic traits have long been present, but it's his belief that he can lock down the league’s best scorers that have transformed him into a truly elite defender. Thompson doubled down on this confidence when asked who the toughest cover in the league is, promptly responding:

"Nobody."

While he’s full of confidence, Thompson emphasized the role of humility in his ascent from top prospect to NBA two-way force. "I know I’m not anywhere I think I could be yet, so there’s nothing to be too cocky about," he said.

Thompson then cited seeing kids open packs of Panini basketball cards as some of his most humbling moments. "It’s crazy seeing people tag me in Instagram videos opening my Panini card and being super excited," Thompson said. "Kids are excited to get a signed card or even just a normal card, and it’s crazy because I was one of those kids at one point.”

Putting his humility into action, Thompson identified leadership, ball-handling, and shooting as his biggest development goals at the moment. As he works on these attributes and skills, Thompson expressed that he doesn’t envision a ceiling on how good he can be.

"I think my ceiling is as good as I allow myself to be through the work I put in," Thompson told Draft Digest.

Throughout his career, Thompson will continue to develop and alter his game as the 22-year-old moves through phases of his career. But for now, his focus remains on the season at hand as the Rockets enter their latter stretch with a top-four seed. To conclude this conversation, Thompson left Draft Digest with some closing words regarding a likely playoff run:

“I'm trying to get there first, but we've had a lot of playoff-like games this year; we’ve had a lot of close ones against great teams. I mean, we're a young team, [and] we're experiencing it all for the first time, so I don't know how I'm prepared for it yet, but I'm always in playoff mode.”

- Amen Thompson to Draft Digest

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