Ausar Thompson wishes to bring championships back to Detroit: ‘I want to be one of the greatest players ever’

Detroit fans might of been a bit surprised when they chose Ausar Thompson as their No. 5 pick of the 2023 NBA Draft, as the most popular names being thrown out there were among Jarace Walker and Cam Whitmore. However, it seems that the Pistons probably nailed it, as they’ve selected a young player whose ambitions are through the roof.

With the Overtime Elite star in the roster, they can rest assured that they’ve recieved a top-notch athlete. Thompson has publicly went out to say that he made it to Michigan to bring back trophies to the franchise, as he wants to become the best of the best.

“I want to be one of the greatest players ever. I want to win championships, bring championships to Detroit,” he recently assured. Not even teammate Cade Cunningham, who was chosen as the 2021 draft’s top pick, dared to aim that high.

Ever since 2008, the Pistons have enjoyed eight lottery picks before Ausar was picked as No. 5 in this year’s draft. In the past they selected Greg Monroe (2010), Brandon Knight (2011), Andre Drummond (2012), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (2013), Stanley Johnson (2015), Killian Hayes (2020) and Cunningham (2021), as well as last year’s Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren.

“At the core of him, he makes winning plays,” said Jarret Jack, the Pistons Summer League coach. “Those winning plays, 50-50 balls, trench rebounds, cutting like you said, pushing the basketball, making the extra pass, sacrificing himself with a cut so someone else can get the extra pass on the back side.

“That’s something you can’t teach. That’s something that we want to be a part of, and it’s something that he is.”

Thompson’s teammates have also been impressed by the youngster’s potential both in training and his Summer League debut

Just as Thompson recorded 12 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks during his 29-minute exhibition on Sunday’s Summer League game, he’s begun to impress his teammates.

Even though they ended up losing 113 to 101 to the Rockets this weekend, many were amazed by his defensive qualities. Check out his highlights from his debut:

“He makes a lot of winning plays, and I think that’s something that gets overlooked,” fellow rookie Marcus Sasser said about him. “He’s a plus every time he’s on the floor. He’s a great playmaker. Because of his height and athleticism, he can see the floor very well.”

Even though teammate Jalen Duren thinks he still needs time to improve, he agrees that his potential is over the roof.

“Right away, you just see the length and athleticism that he brings to the game, the IQ, and he’s still very raw,” he said. “The way he impacts the game is amazing. You can have him on the ball, off the ball, on defense he can guard, what I’ve seen, about 1 through 5. As he comes through the league and gets more and more of an understanding of what the game is, he’s going to be a great player.”