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The Thunderous Rise of JT Thor

JT Thor is becoming one of the key pieces of the Hornets' future

Austin Leake

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JT Thor was selected at pick 37 in the second round in the 2021 NBA Draft. At the time he was often forgotten about due to the hype around the Hornets' first-round selections, James Bouknight and Kai Jones. Well, here we are nearing the end of the their second seasons and JT Thor has put himself in the conversation to be the best prospect of the 2021 draft.

JT Thor stands at 6'9 with a monstrous 7'3 wingspan he offers the Hornets much-needed length and defensive versatility at the forward position. Although raw, Thor had a good reputation defensively in college and flashed a soft looking jump shot.At times this year Thor's offensive limitations made him so ineffective his spot in the rotation was under threat, but that's begun to change.

Thor has played in more games this season (64 games) than Bouknight (60 games) and Jones (62 games) have played combined over the past two seasons. Even though the stats don't show it all the time, Thor impacts the game positively. At just 20 years old, he's still at the very beginning of his development, but has recently looked more confident and taken major strides in advancing his game.

The last seven games have been Thor's most successful and consistent as a pro. Thor has had three games during that stretch where he has had double figures in points and is averaging 9.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks while shooting 56.5% from the field and 42.3% from three. As Eric Collins has mentioned frequently, Thor is currently on a streak of at least one made three in each of his past nine games.

On top of Thor's recent surge in production, he's staying humble and remains one of the hardest workers on the team getting in extra time after practice.

Let's take a quick look at the most notable plays recently where Thor has shown the most improvement. 

On this play, you can see Thor's increased confidence and quick trigger. Earlier in the season, Thor most likely would've turned this shot down or hesitated.

In the next two clips Thor flashes his improved handle and some pull up/fade away shooting ability from the short mid-range, something he wouldn't have even attempted in 2022. The mechanics look fluid and with his high release it's hard to effectively contest the shot.

Over the past week JT Thor has achieved career highs in points (14), assists (4), field goals (6), and three-pointers made (3). As well, Thor recorded his first game with a multi-steal and multi-block game with three steals and two blocks. All are signs he's reading and anticipating the game at a higher level.

Last Four Games

@ Pelicans 3/23: 9 points 3 rebounds 2 blocks 1 steal 2/3 three-point

@ Mavericks 3/24: 12 points 3 rebounds 2 blocks 3 steals 2/5 three-point

vs Mavericks 3/26: 9 points 3 rebounds 3/3 three-point

@ Thunder 3/28: 14 points 6 rebounds 4 assists 1 block 6/11 field goal

Defense has been Thor's calling card most of the year, with head coach Steve Clifford consistently praising his defensive IQ

"Defensively he may play with better technique than anybody else on our team. He's a great learner. We execute when he's out on the floor (Defensively)"

Since this quote in February Thor's defense has continued to improve, especially over the last seven games as highlighted below.

Taking a look at Thor's best two recent performances below. He shows a lot of positive flashes where he has been more aggressive in finding his shot. He also shows a little bit of his improved playmaking in the game against the Thunder. There are still flaws to iron out, he's been caught out at times doing too much with the ball in his hands and being out of control leading to live ball turnovers and travels. 

Below, is another example of Thor taking his game to new levels, as he gets his defender to close out hard on him. Then impressively, Thor changes his pace and slashes to the basket with a smooth and controlled move. Thor would not have had such a hard defensive closeout for him to attack if it wasn't for his three-point shot falling earlier in the game.

Since the Hornets traded Jalen McDaniels, Thor has made the most of his opportunity. Perhaps the Hornets' new Thor had this in him and that was one of the reasons the Hornets were happy to move on from McDaniels. Although the production might not replace McDaniels immediately, remember JT Thor is 4.5 years younger than Jalen McDaniels. 

To recap, Thor is on the right track in the progression and development of his career. Many games this season, Thor has been the first player off the bench, which means that Clifford has confidence in him. Having defensive specialists to surround LaMelo Ball projects to be a good fit going forward for this young Hornets squad. Overall, it's only up from here for JT Thor and his career.

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Austin Leake
AUSTIN LEAKE

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