The Detroit Pistons believe in Ausar Thompson. And why wouldn't they? He is 23 years old, has elite physical and athletic tools, and is already one of the best perimeter defenders ever. That is why they gave him a five-year, $155 million extension.
Since the start of the season, the organization and the fanbase have been talking about Thompson's offensive development. Everyone in Detroit wants Thompson to take a big stride on that end of the floor and become a true two-way force. While he has been better offensively this season, the story of his improvement is getting overstated.
Ausar Thompson's offensive improvement might not mean much for the Pistons
Thompson has the ball in his hands more this season. The Pistons are making a point of having Cade Cunningham off the ball more. This is a smart move, as Detroit doesn't want to run Cade to the ground.
The results of this experiment have been mixed. Thompson increased his assist percentage from 16.8 to 25, but his turnover percentage also went up from 14.3 to 20.7. He is taking and making more self-created shots, but his usage rate has stayed the same. He remains below league average in terms of efficiency, with his True Shooting percentage at 56.2.
There has also been a lot of discussion about Thompson's shooting improvement. There has been more of a willingness to take jumpers, at least from the mid-range. But the results are far from encouraging.
Last season, Thompson took 57% of his shots within four feet of the rim. This season, this number went down to 43%, per Cleaning the Glass. Thompson has taken 15% of his shots outside 14 feet (~ the free-throw line), including three-pointers. Last season, this number was at 7%.
In terms of accuracy, however, there is little improvement. Thompson is 1/9 on those shots outside 14 feet. Last season, he was 36% on all shots outside four feet. This season, he is at 39%. This is a slight improvement, but he is still well below average for a perimeter player.
At the end of the day, it's difficult to imagine this type of improvement translating into the playoffs. Are the Pistons really going to give Thompson the ball when the game is down to the wire? Are they going to trust him to create his own shot in isolation or in a pick-and-roll situation? Without the threat of scoring, is Thompson really going to be able to set up his teammates for good shots?
Wednesday's loss to the Sixers was telling. In crunch time, when the Pistons were mounting their comeback, Thompson was invisible offensively. He took one shot in the final seven minutes of the game and had zero assists.
When it matters the most, Thompson still spends most of his time in the dunker spot on offense. The fact that he is taking slightly more jumpers doesn't actually change the equation all that much. Defenses don't see him as a scoring threat, so they bring a ton of help off of him to pack the paint.
There is a reason the Pistons have an 110.8 offensive rating with Thompson on the floor, which would rank as the 21st-best offense in the league. The half-court offense will always be a problem, and taking a few more jumpers or having a couple more on-ball reps per game is unfortunately not going to change that.
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