Finally, Someone Else Likes Texas Stud Tristan Thompson

And then today, this, from ESPN’s John Hollinger: He’s got Tristan Thompson rated third overall on his draft board.

"However, two players in particular warrant our attention: Tristan Thompson and Derrick Williams. Thompson and Williams had the highest ratings of any player in the Draft Rater this year, and while that doesn’t come with the same assurances it does for Kyrie Irving, they both appear to be very solid prospects. Of the 13 players who rated at 15.5 or above in previous iterations, most were very successful as pros, and the ones that weren’t tended to fail due to injuries and lack of professionalism — issues that shouldn’t be factors for Thompson and Williams. The one true miss was Jared Jeffries."

For whatever reason I often disagree with Hollinger on the NBA, but we’re in the same boat on Thompson, albeit for different reasons (me: eye test; Hollinger: his player rater system, whatever that is). We actually agree on Josh Selby, too (we both say he’s overrated), but differ on Brandon Knight (Hollinger’s not a fan, but I am).

Thompson, who is Canadian, recently worked out for the Raptors. I think he’s a logical fit 5th overall, and Toronto needs a power forward.