阿萨尔·汤普森应效仿阿门·汤普森的进攻进化蓝图：提升罚球命中率

The Thompson twins have become two of the most explosive forces in the NBA in what feels like no time at all. Elite defenders with blossoming but different offensive games, Ausar Thompson of the Detroit Pistons and Amen Thompson of the Houston Rockets are rising forces of nature. What Ausar can learn from Amen, however, is the key to simplifying offense: Improving his free throw shooting.

The leap that Amen Thompson has already experienced as an offensive player can be attributed to a number of factors, but Ausar Thompson's greatest lesson to learn from his brother is the value of preventing teams from being able to foul in case of danger.

Detroit's Thompson twin has spent his first two seasons cultivating a reputation as perhaps the most versatile defender in the NBA. Between his playmaking as a ball hawk and shot-blocker, his ability to defend almost any position, and elite off-ball activity, Thompson is a force.

The area in which he's trailed behind his brother, however, is on the offensive end of the floor—perhaps more in mentality than anything else.

Amen Thompson finished the 2025-26 season with averages of 18.3 points and 5.3 assists per game. He put a lot of work into that success, but a defining factor in his leap from Year 2 averages of 14.1 points and 3.8 assists: Going from 68.4 percent to 77.9 percent at the free-throw line.

As Ausar Thompson looks for his own path to success on offense, continuing to improve at the charity stripe should be a top priority.

Ausar Thompson must improve FT shooting to unlock rest of his game

Amen Thompson averaged 10.0 drives per game in 2024-25, shooting 48.5 percent and scoring 3.3 points per contest via said attempts. In 2025-26, those numbers skyrocketed to 15.5 drives and 7.3 points on 52.5 percent shooting.

One of the primary reasons he was able to experience so much more success was the fact that he limited teams' ability to cut his drives off with actions that could result in fouls being called.

Ausar Thompson could go a long way toward unlocking his own potential as a slasher if he makes similar improvement. The good news is that the process has started, as he's up from 57.1 percent in 2025-26 to 68.4 percent in 2026-27.

If Thompson can sustain that level of improvement, then he can experience similar success to his brother as a slashing scorer who can put points up with volume.

Cleary, he'll also need to improve his ability to score from outside of the restricted area. The good news, however, is that he shot 65.0 percent within five feet of the rim in 2025-26 and is making an absurd 81.5 percent of his attempts in 2026-27.

If Thompson can improve his free throw shooting to the point of at least being in the mid-70s, then teams will have an even harder time guarding him. Bailing themselves out with a physical action that could be a foul will be less likely and the physicality they approach him with will be less consistent.

In turn, Thompson's evolution on the offensive end of the floor can truly take hold.

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