Scouting Report: Darius Thompson
Darius Thompson was on the requests list for a while now and in the next few episodes I will make reports mostly of the players that you requested so stay tuned.
Darius had a very good season in Brindisi in BCL and in Italian League and he deserves the attention from top teams.
BACKGROUND INFO
Position: G
Height: 193 cm (6 ft 4 in)
Date of Birth: 4/5/1995
Nationality: American
Previous clubs:
2018–19 ZZ Leiden
2019–21 Happy Casa Brindisi
Played his freshman season for Tennesse Volunteers and had a minor offensive role in the team and later transfered to Virginia. Played his sophmore and juniors there but his senior year he played for Western Kentucky. In his senior year he averaged 13.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. In August 2018 he joined Dutch team ZZ Leiden and had a great season in the Dutch League and also in the FIBA Europe Cup. He was the scoring leader in both leagues and also the MVP of the Dutch League. After the season he joined Happy Casa Brindisi and played his last two seasons there.
VIDEO REPORT:
OFFENSE
Shooting: He needs to work a little more on his shot from distance. His percentages are solid but the shot doesn’t look consistent and reliable over the long term and he could have problems with making shots on the highest level. Usually not taking too many shots from distance and is more looking for passes or attacking the rim. If he manages to improve his shot by a few percentages and become more consistent, he can become an even bigger scoring threat.
Slashing: He is not an elite athlete or an explosive player but he can get by defenders and to the rim. Plays at his own pace and this makes him so interesting. He reads the defense well and knows where are the weaknesses and he tries to exploit that. With his great positional size he has no problems finishing in the paint, even against taller players. Sometimes he is slowing down in the last step and losing the defender that way while showing some good body control on those finishes.
Pick & rolls: Pick & rolls are an important piece of his game. He has great court vision and controls all players and can find them on all spots on the court. Darius is also capable of scoring some points out of pick & rolls. He knows how to use the screen and get some separation and as mentioned before, with his size he usually doesn’t have any troubles with finishes at the rim. He makes great decisions in pick & rolls and this can translate to any level.
Playmaking: I already mentioned his court vision on the pick & roll part but repeating it here again. With his size he can see above the defenders and controls all players on the court. Makes very good decisions and his passes usually come on time. He is not making many mistakes and he can run the offense even in teams on the top level.
Transition: Darius is also dangerous in transition. He doesn’t have elite speed but is still hard to stop because of his size. He likes to go all the way to the rim and rarely stops and takes early shots in transition. Good at running without the ball too and this is also an area where he could be really useful for many teams.
DEFENSE
Perimeter Defense: Darius has a lot to offer in defense too. With his size he can defend many positions on perimeter and also on low post. On the perimeter he slides his feet well and is not afraid of contact. Reads the offense well, has good reactions and even when he is beaten he can contest the shots with his length and block some shots.
Pick & Roll Defense: Also a good defender in pick & rolls. I think he can improve a little in maneuvering around screens but other elements are on a pretty high level. His size again helps him a lot, makes deflections and can make some steals. Even capable of switching on pick & rolls and solidly defending bigs.
Post Up Defense: He can hold his position and defend wings on bigs on post ups. Active feet and hands and he is not scared of contact. Defensive versatility is definitely something that teams on any level would need and Darius offers a lot of versatility.
Off-Ball Defense: I see the most reserves in his defensive game in his off-ball defense. Sometimes leaving his man too open, sometimes letting him cut and when defending a shooter he can be a few steps behind and stuck on screens. Some small details but I think he can improve in this area.
Steals & Blocks: His steals and blocks numbers are also usually high. With his length he can go around players for steals, active hands and makes many deflections and also good anticipation for interceptions. Not an elite athlete but can make some blocks around the rim too and is a good shot blocker for his position.
Rebounding: Similar story with his rebounding. Good rebounder for his position but I think he could be a little more active as a rebounder and try to get more rebounds. This would also help his team and he could push the ball forward and look for easy points in transition.
SUMMARY
Darius Thompson has a lot to offer on both sides of the court.
In offense he brings the complete package from scoring to playmaking. Has room to improve in his shot from distance to be more consistent but even without that he should be fine.
On the defensive side he is versatile and can defend many positions.
Definitely a player that is improving every year and he deserves a spot at the highest level.
