"We’re gonna kill em" - Ausar Thompson on facing his twin brother in summer league

Twins Ausar Thompson and Amen Thompson made NBA history for being the first twins drafted in the top five. On Thursday when the NBA draft took place, Amen was selected by the Houston Rockets with the fourth pick, while Ausar was selected fifth by the Detroit Pistons.

With the NBA Summer League schedule now released, it has been revealed that the pair will square off on Sunday, July 9th.

During a recent media scrum, Ausar Thompson spoke to Detroit media members to give his thoughts on the scheduled clash. With his brother Amen in attendance, he didn't pull any punches, joking about the pair being ready to kill one another on the court.

“My first thought was, we’re gonna kill em, you know? And he’s sitting right here, so he can hear it himself… I told him. So, he probably wants to do the same thing but it’s not gonna go that way.”

Although Ausar Thompson is just 20 years old, the 6'6 scorer has shown flashes of elite athleticism during his time with the Overtime Elite. With a unique combination of size and grace for a player with his explosiveness, Thompson's touch around the rim is exceptional.

Players with tremendous athleticism and explosiveness often need time to develop finesse. Thompson has already done so. Whether he's initiating contact to force an and-one, or pushing the break, his touch around the rim is remarkable. He has also proven himself as a lockdown defender, something Detroit could use.

2023 NBA Draft Combine

Looking at areas of improvement for Ausar Thompson

Although Ausar Thompson has some impressive athleticism and a great touch around the rim, there's one area he needs to improve: His shooting. During the 2022-23 Overtime Elite season, Thompson shot just 29.8% from beyond the arc, a figure far lower than the NBA average.

Despite that, it's clear that the Detroit Pistons are incredibly pleased with their selection in the draft. During a recent media scrum, Detroit GM Troy Weaver spoke about Ausar Thompson's place on the team's roster as quoted by 'M Live', saying:

2023 NBA Draft

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“He adds to our culture. We got a great person, tremendous worker, tremendous human being. Great athlete. We think he has a chance to be a elite defender on the perimeter. I think he’ll take a lot of pressure off of Cade and Jaden being able to defend the best perimeter player on the other team. But he’s more than a defender.

“He’s dynamic with the ball. His offense is really underrated. I think we’ll see it in time. But we’re excited. I mean, to get this kind of player that can do so many things as an all court athlete, just not [only] explosive in space, he’s all over the floor. So he brings a lot to the table. And we needed this player.”

With the 2023 NBA Summer League set to kick off for Amen on July 7th, and Ausar on July 8th, fans will get a chance to see both in action sooner rather than later.

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