WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.960 Welcome back to the Deep Dive. It is Monday, 00:00:02.180 --> 00:00:06.379 February 2nd, 2026. Today, we are opening a file 00:00:06.379 --> 00:00:09.119 on a player whose career has, well, it's officially 00:00:09.119 --> 00:00:11.380 spanned three different decades, which is a feat 00:00:11.380 --> 00:00:13.500 in itself. But we aren't just looking at longevity 00:00:13.500 --> 00:00:17.019 today. We are looking at a walking contradiction. 00:00:17.460 --> 00:00:18.960 That's really the only way you can put it. I 00:00:18.960 --> 00:00:20.399 mean, we're talking about an athlete who gets 00:00:20.399 --> 00:00:23.000 nicknamed Iron Man, a guy who played, what was 00:00:23.000 --> 00:00:27.140 it, 447 consecutive games, yet he ends his career. 00:00:27.600 --> 00:00:29.280 or at least the tail end of it, with a suspension 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:31.600 for performance -enhancing drugs. Right, and 00:00:31.600 --> 00:00:34.079 a player who was so disciplined, so meticulous, 00:00:34.079 --> 00:00:36.380 that he switched his dominant shooting hand in 00:00:36.380 --> 00:00:39.579 the middle of his NBA career. A mechanic almost 00:00:39.579 --> 00:00:42.500 no one, and I mean no one, touches once they 00:00:42.500 --> 00:00:44.979 turn pro. Yet at the same time, his personal 00:00:44.979 --> 00:00:47.560 life became a synonym for, well, for chaos and 00:00:47.560 --> 00:00:50.119 tabloid fodder. The stack of sources we have 00:00:50.119 --> 00:00:53.189 today is, it's massive. We've got everything 00:00:53.189 --> 00:00:55.950 from the early biographical data, you know, from 00:00:55.950 --> 00:00:58.310 his days up in Brampton. We've got the advanced 00:00:58.310 --> 00:01:00.409 analytics from his time with the Cavaliers, which 00:01:00.409 --> 00:01:02.810 tell a really interesting story. And then you 00:01:02.810 --> 00:01:04.689 have the court documents from the personal lawsuits 00:01:04.689 --> 00:01:06.709 and, of course, the medical reports detailing 00:01:06.709 --> 00:01:09.700 the suspension. It's a lot to unpack. So our 00:01:09.700 --> 00:01:12.480 mission is to synthesize all of this. We really 00:01:12.480 --> 00:01:14.900 want to understand how Tristan Thompson, who 00:01:14.900 --> 00:01:16.739 was at the time the highest drafted Canadian 00:01:16.739 --> 00:01:20.760 in NBA history, how he navigated a 13 plus year 00:01:20.760 --> 00:01:24.379 career with a very, let's say, limited offensive 00:01:24.379 --> 00:01:26.980 skill set. How does a guy who, for all intents 00:01:26.980 --> 00:01:29.280 and purposes, can't shoot become indispensable? 00:01:29.540 --> 00:01:32.269 How does he win a championship? earn hundreds 00:01:32.269 --> 00:01:34.310 of millions of dollars and then just watch his 00:01:34.310 --> 00:01:36.750 reputation take such a bizarre turn right at 00:01:36.750 --> 00:01:38.609 the finish line. It's a fascinating case study 00:01:38.609 --> 00:01:40.989 on value. I mean, what does the NBA truly value? 00:01:41.109 --> 00:01:42.709 It's availability. Yeah. And then what is the 00:01:42.709 --> 00:01:45.430 public value? That's narrative. And his career 00:01:45.430 --> 00:01:47.709 is this collision between those two things. OK, 00:01:47.810 --> 00:01:50.790 so let's get into it. Section one, the Brampton 00:01:50.790 --> 00:01:54.000 origin. We are going all the way back to March 00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:58.280 13th, 1991. Tristan Trevor James Thompson is 00:01:58.280 --> 00:02:01.439 born in Brampton, Ontario. Now, for you listening 00:02:01.439 --> 00:02:03.260 who might not be totally up on the geography 00:02:03.260 --> 00:02:05.780 of hoops, Brampton today is known as a veritable 00:02:05.780 --> 00:02:08.240 factory for basketball talent. It's a hotbed, 00:02:08.360 --> 00:02:12.569 but in 1991... Not so much. Not at all. And that 00:02:12.569 --> 00:02:14.930 context is so important. Canadian basketball 00:02:14.930 --> 00:02:16.870 at that time, I mean, Brampton is churning out 00:02:16.870 --> 00:02:19.590 talent now, right? But back in the late 90s, 00:02:19.590 --> 00:02:21.969 early 2000s, the path to the NBA wasn't just, 00:02:21.969 --> 00:02:23.830 you know, not paved. It was barely a dirt road. 00:02:24.409 --> 00:02:26.150 Thompson was born to Jamaican parents, Trevor 00:02:26.150 --> 00:02:28.550 and Andrea. He was the eldest of four sons. And 00:02:28.550 --> 00:02:30.370 the athletic lineage was definitely there. His 00:02:30.370 --> 00:02:32.330 younger brother, Deshaun, was also a highly rated 00:02:32.330 --> 00:02:34.710 prospect coming up. So talent was in the blood. 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:36.919 But staying in Canada wasn't really a viable 00:02:36.919 --> 00:02:39.180 option if you had dreams of being a lottery pick 00:02:39.180 --> 00:02:40.939 back then, was it? You couldn't just play at 00:02:40.939 --> 00:02:42.599 your local high school and expect, I don't know, 00:02:42.639 --> 00:02:44.900 Duke or Kentucky to come knocking on your door 00:02:44.900 --> 00:02:47.400 in Brampton? No, absolutely not. There was this 00:02:47.400 --> 00:02:51.020 talent drain happening, a migration, really. 00:02:51.120 --> 00:02:52.719 If you wanted the exposure, if you wanted to 00:02:52.719 --> 00:02:55.300 play against the best, you had to go south. So 00:02:55.300 --> 00:02:57.819 Thompson starts at St. Marguerite -Douville for 00:02:57.819 --> 00:03:00.800 grades 9 and 10. But he and his family knew that 00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:02.900 to get on the big stage, he needed more eyes 00:03:02.900 --> 00:03:05.819 on him. which is why he transfers to St. Benedict's 00:03:05.819 --> 00:03:08.039 Prep in Newark, New Jersey, for his sophomore 00:03:08.039 --> 00:03:11.860 year. Wow. That is a culture shock. Going from 00:03:11.860 --> 00:03:13.860 Brampton to Newark, that's not just jumping into 00:03:13.860 --> 00:03:15.759 the deep end, that's jumping into the ocean. 00:03:15.900 --> 00:03:19.490 It's a huge leap. But it was seen as necessary 00:03:19.490 --> 00:03:21.370 for the competition. He actually went there with 00:03:21.370 --> 00:03:23.689 another Canadian talent, Mambuk Kabongo, who 00:03:23.689 --> 00:03:25.610 would later also go on to play at Texas with 00:03:25.610 --> 00:03:28.030 him. And for a while, it worked perfectly. I 00:03:28.030 --> 00:03:30.530 mean, Thompson's stock just soared. He shot up 00:03:30.530 --> 00:03:32.729 the rankings. By the time he entered his junior 00:03:32.729 --> 00:03:35.490 season, he wasn't just some good Canadian prospect. 00:03:35.830 --> 00:03:37.849 He was being talked about as the top recruit 00:03:37.849 --> 00:03:39.849 in the entire nation. The number one recruit 00:03:39.849 --> 00:03:42.620 in the country. That is rarefied air. And that 00:03:42.620 --> 00:03:44.699 brings us to a really, really critical moment 00:03:44.699 --> 00:03:47.000 in his development, a personality indicator, 00:03:47.340 --> 00:03:50.620 the Dan Hurley incident. Now, Dan Hurley is a 00:03:50.620 --> 00:03:53.800 massive name in coaching now, right? Fresh off 00:03:53.800 --> 00:03:56.080 those UConn championships. And he's known for 00:03:56.080 --> 00:04:00.680 being, let's call it intense. Intense is, putting 00:04:00.680 --> 00:04:03.560 it mildly, Dan Hurley demands absolute submission 00:04:03.560 --> 00:04:06.960 to his system. He is fiery, he is loud, and he 00:04:06.960 --> 00:04:08.639 is right in your face. There's no gray area. 00:04:09.740 --> 00:04:12.259 It's Thompson's junior year. St. Benedict's is 00:04:12.259 --> 00:04:14.259 playing Mater Dei. And you have to understand, 00:04:14.419 --> 00:04:18.139 Mater Dei was the number one ranked team in the 00:04:18.139 --> 00:04:21.079 country at the time. This is a heavyweight fight 00:04:21.079 --> 00:04:23.160 on a national stage. So the lights are bright. 00:04:23.279 --> 00:04:25.660 The pressure is on. Every scout is watching this 00:04:25.660 --> 00:04:27.920 game. Everyone. And during a timeout, things 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:29.959 just go sideways. Hurley and Thompson get into 00:04:29.959 --> 00:04:31.899 it. And this wasn't just a simple disagreement 00:04:31.899 --> 00:04:34.720 about a play call, was it? Our sources describe 00:04:34.720 --> 00:04:37.839 something more. Oh, no. This was way beyond that. 00:04:38.240 --> 00:04:41.100 The reports describe a heated debate. Voices 00:04:41.100 --> 00:04:43.019 were raised. It was a full -blown confrontation. 00:04:43.540 --> 00:04:45.980 And, you know, usually a coach might bench a 00:04:45.980 --> 00:04:48.180 player for a few minutes to cool off, send a 00:04:48.180 --> 00:04:50.399 message. Hurley didn't bench him. What'd he do? 00:04:50.680 --> 00:04:53.019 He kicked him off the court. Mid -game. In the 00:04:53.019 --> 00:04:56.220 biggest game of the year. Mid -game. In front 00:04:56.220 --> 00:04:58.939 of everyone. Thompson was removed from the team 00:04:58.939 --> 00:05:02.290 right then and there. Done. That is such a high 00:05:02.290 --> 00:05:04.769 -risk maneuver for a coach, kicking out the number 00:05:04.769 --> 00:05:07.470 one recruit in the nation. But it also speaks 00:05:07.470 --> 00:05:10.230 volumes about Thompson's personality. For better 00:05:10.230 --> 00:05:13.069 or for worse, he clearly didn't back down. He 00:05:13.069 --> 00:05:15.930 didn't. And that moment, it could have derailed 00:05:15.930 --> 00:05:17.569 his whole career. A lot of kids would have crumbled 00:05:17.569 --> 00:05:19.569 under that. Or, you know, they'd get labeled 00:05:19.569 --> 00:05:21.970 uncoachable, and that tag can be a death sentence. 00:05:22.449 --> 00:05:25.269 But instead, he transfers. He lands at Finley 00:05:25.269 --> 00:05:27.189 Prep in Nevada. And this is where the narrative 00:05:27.189 --> 00:05:29.860 shifts from trouble to winner. He teams up with 00:05:29.860 --> 00:05:32.040 his childhood friend from Canada, Corey Joseph. 00:05:32.379 --> 00:05:34.920 The Canadian connection. It stays strong through 00:05:34.920 --> 00:05:37.139 his whole journey. It really does. And the redemption 00:05:37.139 --> 00:05:39.899 arc was immediate. Under coach Michael Packett 00:05:39.899 --> 00:05:43.019 Finley, he just flourished. He leads them to 00:05:43.019 --> 00:05:45.439 their first ever national championship. And he 00:05:45.439 --> 00:05:47.720 racks up the accolades. He becomes a McDonald's 00:05:47.720 --> 00:05:50.079 All -American. And at that time, you have to 00:05:50.079 --> 00:05:52.139 remember how big a deal that was for a Canadian. 00:05:52.360 --> 00:05:54.620 He was only the fourth one ever to get that honor. 00:05:54.779 --> 00:05:57.060 He was joining names like Bill Winnington and 00:05:57.060 --> 00:05:59.769 Barry and Bickett. So it solidified that he was 00:05:59.769 --> 00:06:02.209 the real deal. He wasn't just hype. He had the 00:06:02.209 --> 00:06:04.430 substance to back it up. Exactly. And he was 00:06:04.430 --> 00:06:06.689 also a Jordan brand classic All -American. Yeah. 00:06:06.750 --> 00:06:09.470 He basically proved that the issue at St. Benedict's 00:06:09.470 --> 00:06:11.910 might have been more about that specific environment 00:06:11.910 --> 00:06:15.430 or that specific clash of two very strong personalities, 00:06:15.689 --> 00:06:19.279 not a fundamental flaw in him as a player. OK, 00:06:19.360 --> 00:06:21.339 so he's redeemed himself. He heads to the University 00:06:21.339 --> 00:06:24.920 of Texas, Section 2. And this is interesting 00:06:24.920 --> 00:06:27.120 because initially all the reports said he wasn't 00:06:27.120 --> 00:06:29.000 planning to be a one and done player. Right. 00:06:29.060 --> 00:06:32.709 He flat out told the media. After the NCAA tournament 00:06:32.709 --> 00:06:35.389 that he planned to return for his sophomore year, 00:06:35.589 --> 00:06:38.290 he said he wanted to develop his game more. But 00:06:38.290 --> 00:06:40.290 the production during his freshman year was just 00:06:40.290 --> 00:06:43.329 it was undeniable. He was named the big 12 freshman 00:06:43.329 --> 00:06:45.689 of the year. He had 86 blocks, which was huge. 00:06:45.889 --> 00:06:48.110 Led the team in rebounding double doubles. He 00:06:48.110 --> 00:06:50.430 just looked like a pro already physically. So 00:06:50.430 --> 00:06:52.629 what are the NBA scouts seeing at this point? 00:06:52.709 --> 00:06:54.529 Because if you look back at the tape from Texas, 00:06:54.730 --> 00:06:56.730 he's a bit undersized for a traditional center. 00:06:56.810 --> 00:06:59.709 He's listed at six foot nine and he doesn't have 00:06:59.709 --> 00:07:01.779 a jump shot to save his life. It's just not there. 00:07:01.939 --> 00:07:04.980 No, it's not. But they saw a motor that was just 00:07:04.980 --> 00:07:07.720 relentless, an engine that never stopped. They 00:07:07.720 --> 00:07:09.779 saw a guy who could switch onto guards on the 00:07:09.779 --> 00:07:12.660 perimeter and not get totally embarrassed, which 00:07:12.660 --> 00:07:14.459 was becoming more and more important in the pick 00:07:14.459 --> 00:07:17.360 -and -roll heavy NBA. And they saw his second 00:07:17.360 --> 00:07:20.160 jump. The second jump? Explain that. It's his 00:07:20.160 --> 00:07:23.779 superpower, really. It's the ability to land 00:07:23.779 --> 00:07:26.579 after a rebound attempt or a block attempt and 00:07:26.579 --> 00:07:28.560 get back up in the air faster than anyone else 00:07:28.560 --> 00:07:31.230 around him. Thompson was truly elite at this. 00:07:31.310 --> 00:07:33.709 It's how he compensated for being 6 '9". He was 00:07:33.709 --> 00:07:36.490 like a pogo stick. So, despite all that talk 00:07:36.490 --> 00:07:38.790 of staying in school, he declares for the 2011 00:07:38.790 --> 00:07:41.329 draft, the pull of the league was too strong. 00:07:41.790 --> 00:07:45.569 June 23, 2011. This turns out to be a historic 00:07:45.569 --> 00:07:48.290 night for Canadian basketball. Absolutely. The 00:07:48.290 --> 00:07:50.410 Cleveland Cavaliers, who had the first and fourth 00:07:50.410 --> 00:07:53.209 picks, take Kyrie Irving first, and then they 00:07:53.209 --> 00:07:55.709 take Tristan Thompson fourth overall. And before 00:07:55.709 --> 00:07:58.129 Anthony Bennett, before Andrew Wiggins, Tristan 00:07:58.129 --> 00:08:00.310 Thompson was the highest drafted Canadian player 00:08:00.310 --> 00:08:03.269 ever. And to make it even sweeter, his buddy 00:08:03.269 --> 00:08:06.250 Corey Joseph from Finley Prep went 29th to the 00:08:06.250 --> 00:08:08.569 Spurs. So you've got two Canadians going in the 00:08:08.569 --> 00:08:10.550 first round. Yeah, which was only the second 00:08:10.550 --> 00:08:12.410 time that it ever happened. The first time was 00:08:12.410 --> 00:08:16.139 way, way back in 1983. This was the moment that 00:08:16.139 --> 00:08:19.240 really signaled the arrival of what people started 00:08:19.240 --> 00:08:21.759 calling the golden generation of Canadian basketball 00:08:21.759 --> 00:08:24.000 talent. Well, then right after this career high, 00:08:24.300 --> 00:08:27.259 the whole league just shuts down, the 2011 lockout. 00:08:27.360 --> 00:08:29.860 Right. And this is a key insight into his early 00:08:29.860 --> 00:08:32.659 mindset, his professionalism. A lot of rookies 00:08:32.659 --> 00:08:34.659 in that situation, you know, they might have 00:08:34.659 --> 00:08:36.419 partied, bought a bunch of cars or just worked 00:08:36.419 --> 00:08:38.600 out casually. The league was closed for business. 00:08:39.190 --> 00:08:41.850 Thompson went back to Austin. Back to school. 00:08:41.929 --> 00:08:44.210 Back to school. He enrolled in classes at the 00:08:44.210 --> 00:08:46.590 University of Texas. He continued working towards 00:08:46.590 --> 00:08:48.769 his degree while he was waiting for the owners 00:08:48.769 --> 00:08:51.730 and players to figure things out. It showed a 00:08:51.730 --> 00:08:53.649 level of maturity that the Cavs front office 00:08:53.649 --> 00:08:56.549 absolutely loved. He was already treating his 00:08:56.549 --> 00:08:59.889 career and his life like a professional. So the 00:08:59.889 --> 00:09:02.590 lockout finally ends. He signs his rookie deal 00:09:02.590 --> 00:09:05.110 in December. And that brings us to Section 3. 00:09:05.769 --> 00:09:08.129 The technician. He gets into the league, has 00:09:08.129 --> 00:09:10.269 a solid rookie year, makes the all -rookies second 00:09:10.269 --> 00:09:13.490 team, but then... We have the statistic that 00:09:13.490 --> 00:09:15.309 nearly killed his career before it really even 00:09:15.309 --> 00:09:18.350 got started. The blot rate. This is wild to look 00:09:18.350 --> 00:09:21.389 back on. In the 2012 -13 season, his second year 00:09:21.389 --> 00:09:23.529 in the league, Tristan Thompson was getting his 00:09:23.529 --> 00:09:26.750 shot blocked nearly 17 % of the time. Wait, wait. 00:09:27.389 --> 00:09:29.590 17%. So you're saying almost one out of every 00:09:29.590 --> 00:09:32.230 five shots he took was getting sent back into 00:09:32.230 --> 00:09:35.149 his face. Yes. It was that bad. He was legitimately 00:09:35.149 --> 00:09:38.049 threatening the all -time NBA record for highest 00:09:38.049 --> 00:09:40.330 percentage of shots blocked, which was held by 00:09:40.330 --> 00:09:42.830 a guy named Danny Fortson. Not a record you want. 00:09:43.110 --> 00:09:45.529 So why was it happening? I mean, he's incredibly 00:09:45.529 --> 00:09:48.649 athletic. He's strong. What was the issue? The 00:09:48.649 --> 00:09:51.450 issue was that he was a lefty. But he was very, 00:09:51.649 --> 00:09:54.549 very left -hand dominant. Predictable. He would 00:09:54.549 --> 00:09:56.570 drive left. He'd turn over his left shoulder 00:09:56.570 --> 00:09:58.669 in the post. And he would always try to finish 00:09:58.669 --> 00:10:01.230 low with his left hand. NBA defenders, they figured 00:10:01.230 --> 00:10:02.549 that out immediately. They would just sit on 00:10:02.549 --> 00:10:04.710 his left hand, overplay it. He was completely 00:10:04.710 --> 00:10:07.330 predictable. And at the NBA level, predictable 00:10:07.330 --> 00:10:10.659 gets you erased at the rim. Okay, so he recognizes 00:10:10.659 --> 00:10:14.320 this massive, almost fatal flaw in his game. 00:10:14.700 --> 00:10:16.620 And he does something radical, something that 00:10:16.620 --> 00:10:19.279 I still find hard to wrap my head around. The 00:10:19.279 --> 00:10:22.019 great hand switch. It's one of the most incredible 00:10:22.019 --> 00:10:24.039 in -career adjustments I can think of. Yeah. 00:10:24.100 --> 00:10:26.779 In the offseason of 2013, he just decides, okay, 00:10:26.879 --> 00:10:29.320 I am not a left -hand shooter anymore. I am a 00:10:29.320 --> 00:10:31.659 righty. And let's be clear for everyone listening. 00:10:31.899 --> 00:10:34.259 Players work on their offhand all the time, right? 00:10:34.340 --> 00:10:35.740 You want to be able to finish with both hands 00:10:35.740 --> 00:10:39.929 at the rim. But... Nobody just swaps their dominant 00:10:39.929 --> 00:10:42.129 shooting hand three years into a professional 00:10:42.129 --> 00:10:44.149 career. It's like a major league pitcher suddenly 00:10:44.149 --> 00:10:46.129 deciding he's going to throw with his other arm. 00:10:46.169 --> 00:10:49.190 It doesn't happen. It is completely unheard of. 00:10:49.309 --> 00:10:51.730 It requires, I mean, on a neurological level, 00:10:51.870 --> 00:10:55.169 you're rewiring your motor cortex. Muscle memory 00:10:55.169 --> 00:10:57.169 is such a powerful thing. And he was trying to 00:10:57.169 --> 00:11:00.730 overwrite 22 years of habit in a single summer. 00:11:01.090 --> 00:11:03.889 But he did it. He switched his jump shot, his 00:11:03.889 --> 00:11:06.309 hook shot, his free throws all to the right hand. 00:11:06.679 --> 00:11:10.200 So the big question is, did it actually work? 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:12.559 Or was it just kind of a gimmick that looked 00:11:12.559 --> 00:11:14.519 good on paper? Well, it kept him from infamy. 00:11:14.539 --> 00:11:17.419 His block rate dropped from that nearly 17 % 00:11:17.419 --> 00:11:20.600 down to about 15%. So a 2 % improvement? That 00:11:20.600 --> 00:11:22.639 doesn't sound like a huge leap. It sounds small, 00:11:22.740 --> 00:11:25.399 but in the NBA, those margins are everything. 00:11:25.879 --> 00:11:28.100 It kept him away from that Danny Fortson record. 00:11:28.320 --> 00:11:30.240 And look, it didn't magically make him a sharpshooter. 00:11:30.299 --> 00:11:31.860 He was still a pretty awkward scorer, let's be 00:11:31.860 --> 00:11:34.139 honest. Yeah. But it made him functional. More 00:11:34.139 --> 00:11:36.340 importantly, it showed... The coaching staff 00:11:36.340 --> 00:11:38.779 and the front office that he was willing to humble 00:11:38.779 --> 00:11:41.059 himself and do whatever it took, no matter how 00:11:41.059 --> 00:11:43.240 drastic, to stay on the floor and be effective. 00:11:43.440 --> 00:11:46.659 And staying on the floor, that became his brand. 00:11:46.799 --> 00:11:49.000 This is really where the whole Ironman persona 00:11:49.000 --> 00:11:51.360 begins to take shape, isn't it? Exactly. It's 00:11:51.360 --> 00:11:54.379 built right here. In the 2012, 13 and 2013, 14 00:11:54.379 --> 00:11:57.620 seasons, he started all 82 games both years. 00:11:57.799 --> 00:11:59.679 He wasn't just showing up. He was producing. 00:12:00.240 --> 00:12:03.240 In that 2012 -13 season, the same year he was 00:12:03.240 --> 00:12:05.919 getting blocked so much, he also set the Cavaliers 00:12:05.919 --> 00:12:08.259 franchise record for offensive rebounds with 00:12:08.259 --> 00:12:11.299 .306. That's a massive number. Who did he pass 00:12:11.299 --> 00:12:13.720 for that record? He passed Zydrunasil Gelskas, 00:12:13.860 --> 00:12:16.279 a franchise legend. He was fifth in the entire 00:12:16.279 --> 00:12:18.960 NBA in offensive boards that year. He essentially 00:12:18.960 --> 00:12:21.519 realized, OK, I can't shoot like Kevin Love. 00:12:21.700 --> 00:12:24.279 I don't have post moves like Al Jefferson. So 00:12:24.279 --> 00:12:25.980 my value is going to be getting the ball back 00:12:25.980 --> 00:12:28.899 for the guys who can. He monetized pure effort. 00:12:40.500 --> 00:12:43.940 And just like that, Tristan Thompson's entire 00:12:43.940 --> 00:12:46.120 world changes. He goes from being a cornerstone 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:49.019 starter on a young developing team to the bunch. 00:12:49.220 --> 00:12:51.580 He gets demoted, just flat out. He becomes the 00:12:51.580 --> 00:12:53.580 energy guy off the bench, backing up Kevin Love 00:12:53.580 --> 00:12:56.299 and, initially, Anderson Varejao. How did he 00:12:56.299 --> 00:12:58.700 handle that? Because most guys who just started 00:12:58.700 --> 00:13:01.639 82 games two years in a row would be pouting. 00:13:01.700 --> 00:13:03.740 There would be trade requests. He handled it 00:13:03.740 --> 00:13:06.100 like a true professional. He understood the hierarchy 00:13:06.100 --> 00:13:08.860 immediately. LeBron was the sun and everyone 00:13:08.860 --> 00:13:11.600 else was a planet in orbit. He accepted his role. 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:15.980 But then fate intervened. It's the 2015 playoffs. 00:13:16.080 --> 00:13:18.879 First round against the Boston Celtics. I remember 00:13:18.879 --> 00:13:20.840 this. One of the most controversial plays in 00:13:20.840 --> 00:13:23.460 recent playoff history. Kelly Olnick gets tangled 00:13:23.460 --> 00:13:26.500 up with Kevin Love, yanks his arm, and dislocates 00:13:26.500 --> 00:13:28.480 his shoulder. Love is out for the rest of the 00:13:28.480 --> 00:13:31.539 playoffs. It was just a devastating blow for 00:13:31.539 --> 00:13:33.700 Cleveland's title hopes. Everyone thought they 00:13:33.700 --> 00:13:36.259 were done. But it opened a door. Yeah. Enter 00:13:36.259 --> 00:13:38.559 Tristan Thompson. He steps right into that starting 00:13:38.559 --> 00:13:40.720 lineup, and he becomes completely indispensable. 00:13:41.480 --> 00:13:44.039 In that 2015 finals run against the Golden State 00:13:44.039 --> 00:13:46.879 Warriors, he was averaging nearly 11 rebounds 00:13:46.879 --> 00:13:49.269 a game. But it wasn't just the raw numbers. It 00:13:49.269 --> 00:13:51.710 was his defensive versatility. This is what made 00:13:51.710 --> 00:13:54.269 him so valuable. He was switching out onto Steph 00:13:54.269 --> 00:13:56.789 Curry on the perimeter after a screen, and he 00:13:56.789 --> 00:13:59.990 was holding his own. Which is insane for a center. 00:14:00.070 --> 00:14:02.230 Usually when Steph Curry sees a center switched 00:14:02.230 --> 00:14:04.590 onto him, it's barbecue chicken. It's an automatic 00:14:04.590 --> 00:14:08.269 three points. It is. But Thompson had the lateral 00:14:08.269 --> 00:14:10.250 quipness and the discipline to stay in front 00:14:10.250 --> 00:14:13.090 of him. The Cavs ended up losing in six games 00:14:13.090 --> 00:14:15.720 that year. But Thompson proved beyond a shadow 00:14:15.720 --> 00:14:17.620 of a doubt that he was a championship caliber 00:14:17.620 --> 00:14:20.700 center. He made himself essential. Which led 00:14:20.700 --> 00:14:24.340 directly to the contract standoff of 2015. This 00:14:24.340 --> 00:14:26.460 was a masterclass in leverage by him and his 00:14:26.460 --> 00:14:28.639 agent, wasn't it? An absolute masterclass by 00:14:28.639 --> 00:14:31.100 his agent, Rich Paul. Thompson was a restricted 00:14:31.100 --> 00:14:33.659 free agent. The Cavs were completely capped out. 00:14:33.720 --> 00:14:35.960 They had LeBron. They had Kyrie. They had just 00:14:35.960 --> 00:14:38.299 re -signed Kevin Love. They could not replace 00:14:38.299 --> 00:14:40.720 Tristan Thompson if he left. because they just 00:14:40.720 --> 00:14:42.539 didn't have the cap space to go out and sign 00:14:42.539 --> 00:14:44.600 another quality starting center. They were trapped. 00:14:44.799 --> 00:14:47.840 So Thompson and his camp knew this, and they 00:14:47.840 --> 00:14:51.039 held out. They held out hard. For four months, 00:14:51.179 --> 00:14:53.480 it was a stalemate. He missed all of training 00:14:53.480 --> 00:14:56.039 camp. He missed the entire preseason. He even 00:14:56.039 --> 00:14:58.299 skipped playing for Team Canada in the FIBA Americas 00:14:58.299 --> 00:15:01.340 tournament, which you know he loves to do. He 00:15:01.340 --> 00:15:03.830 was risking game checks to make his point. He 00:15:03.830 --> 00:15:05.970 bet on himself. And the narrative at the time, 00:15:05.990 --> 00:15:07.870 at least among a lot of fans, was that he was 00:15:07.870 --> 00:15:10.110 being greedy. People were saying $82 million 00:15:10.110 --> 00:15:12.950 for a bench player who averages eight points 00:15:12.950 --> 00:15:15.190 a game. Are you kidding me? Right. But on October 00:15:15.190 --> 00:15:17.690 22, just before the season started, he got it. 00:15:17.789 --> 00:15:21.250 Five years, $82 million. And you're right. If 00:15:21.250 --> 00:15:23.230 you look at it in a vacuum, just based on points 00:15:23.230 --> 00:15:25.669 per game, it was an overpay. But in the context 00:15:25.669 --> 00:15:28.330 of that team, it was the cost of keeping a championship 00:15:28.330 --> 00:15:31.649 window open. If they lose him, they probably 00:15:31.649 --> 00:15:33.210 don't have the personnel to beat Golden State 00:15:33.210 --> 00:15:35.389 the next year. And that investment paid off almost 00:15:35.389 --> 00:15:39.149 immediately, the 2016 championship. He was a 00:15:39.149 --> 00:15:41.710 workhorse again, played all 82 games that season. 00:15:42.110 --> 00:15:44.909 In March of 2016, he broke the franchise record 00:15:44.909 --> 00:15:47.529 for consecutive games played, passing Jim Schoens 00:15:47.529 --> 00:15:50.769 of Mark of 361. But the real return on investment 00:15:50.769 --> 00:15:54.350 was the finals, the rematch, the historic 3 -1 00:15:54.350 --> 00:15:57.110 comeback. We all remember the iconic moments 00:15:57.110 --> 00:15:59.129 from that series, right? We remember the block 00:15:59.129 --> 00:16:02.509 by LeBron on Andre Iguodala. We remember the 00:16:02.509 --> 00:16:05.610 shot by Kyrie over Steph. But what was the Tristan 00:16:05.610 --> 00:16:07.710 Thompson moment? It's not one single moment. 00:16:07.909 --> 00:16:10.889 It's the cumulative pressure he applied. The 00:16:10.889 --> 00:16:13.269 Warriors loved to play their death lineup with 00:16:13.269 --> 00:16:15.409 Draymond Green at center. They wanted to go small 00:16:15.409 --> 00:16:17.730 and run you off the floor. Most centers couldn't 00:16:17.730 --> 00:16:19.190 stay on the court against that lineup. They were 00:16:19.190 --> 00:16:21.580 too slow. Thompson could. And he punished him 00:16:21.580 --> 00:16:23.960 for it. He feasted on the offensive glass, just 00:16:23.960 --> 00:16:26.080 demoralizing them. He essentially averaged a 00:16:26.080 --> 00:16:28.460 double -double in that series. Ten points, ten 00:16:28.460 --> 00:16:31.159 rebounds. He did all the dirty work. And you 00:16:31.159 --> 00:16:35.029 just don't beat. A 73 -win Warriors team without 00:16:35.029 --> 00:16:36.850 someone who was willing to set the hard screens, 00:16:37.429 --> 00:16:40.090 dive for the loose balls, and absolutely break 00:16:40.090 --> 00:16:42.529 the other team's spirit by grabbing an offensive 00:16:42.529 --> 00:16:44.870 rebound after they just played 23 seconds of 00:16:44.870 --> 00:16:47.350 perfect defense. That was Kristen Thompson's 00:16:47.350 --> 00:16:49.169 value. That was the $82 million right there. 00:16:49.289 --> 00:16:52.210 He's a champion. He helps end the 52 -year championship 00:16:52.210 --> 00:16:55.210 drought for the city of Cleveland. And he just 00:16:55.210 --> 00:16:57.230 keeps playing. The streak keeps going. It eventually 00:16:57.230 --> 00:17:02.289 hits 447 consecutive games. 447 games. Longest 00:17:02.289 --> 00:17:04.390 active streak in the league at the time. It finally 00:17:04.390 --> 00:17:08.250 ended on April 5, 2017 because of sprained thumb, 00:17:08.410 --> 00:17:10.910 a fluke injury. But just think about that for 00:17:10.910 --> 00:17:13.549 a second. Nearly six full seasons without missing 00:17:13.549 --> 00:17:16.529 a single game. In the modern era of load management 00:17:16.529 --> 00:17:18.910 where star players sit out because it's a Tuesday, 00:17:19.029 --> 00:17:21.769 that is a unicorn statistic. It's unbelievable. 00:17:21.990 --> 00:17:24.569 It really is. It defines the entire first half 00:17:24.569 --> 00:17:26.549 of his career. That old saying, availability 00:17:26.549 --> 00:17:31.529 is the best ability. But all empires fall. LeBron 00:17:31.529 --> 00:17:35.009 leaves Cleveland again in 2018. The Cavs go into 00:17:35.009 --> 00:17:38.490 a full -scale tank, and we enter Section 5, the 00:17:38.490 --> 00:17:40.670 journeyman years. Thompson stays in Cleveland 00:17:40.670 --> 00:17:42.490 for a bit during the rebuild. He's the veteran 00:17:42.490 --> 00:17:44.930 presence. And he actually put up some surprisingly 00:17:44.930 --> 00:17:47.250 good numbers on those bad teams. He had more 00:17:47.250 --> 00:17:49.490 offensive freedom. He dropped a career -high 00:17:49.490 --> 00:17:52.089 35 points against the Pistons in January 2020. 00:17:52.490 --> 00:17:54.549 He was even trying to expand his game, shooting 00:17:54.549 --> 00:17:56.849 a few threes here and there. Average to double 00:17:56.849 --> 00:17:59.279 -double that year. But then... The suitcase era 00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:03.099 begins, and it gets dizzying trying to keep track. 00:18:03.180 --> 00:18:07.259 Walk us through the 2020 to 2023 timeline. Okay, 00:18:07.299 --> 00:18:09.660 so it starts in November of 2020. He signs with 00:18:09.660 --> 00:18:12.480 the Boston Celtics. It's a two -year, $19 million 00:18:12.480 --> 00:18:15.539 deal. An interesting little side note here. He 00:18:15.539 --> 00:18:17.660 actually became a U .S. citizen during his time 00:18:17.660 --> 00:18:19.900 in Boston, so he's a dual citizen now. And how 00:18:19.900 --> 00:18:22.740 was the Boston fit for him? It was. It was okay. 00:18:22.880 --> 00:18:25.380 Just okay. He averaged about seven points and 00:18:25.380 --> 00:18:28.660 eight rebounds. Solid. but not spectacular. The 00:18:28.660 --> 00:18:30.599 Celtics were looking for more financial flexibility 00:18:30.599 --> 00:18:34.130 and a different look. So in August 2021, They 00:18:34.130 --> 00:18:36.230 traded him to the Sacramento Kings in a three 00:18:36.230 --> 00:18:39.289 -team deal. And in Sacramento, we found a statistical 00:18:39.289 --> 00:18:41.849 anomaly in our notes that I absolutely love. 00:18:42.069 --> 00:18:44.029 Chuckles, yeah. It is? It's one of my favorite 00:18:44.029 --> 00:18:46.569 weird stats. Through the first half of that season 00:18:46.569 --> 00:18:48.890 with the Kings, Tristan Thompson technically 00:18:48.890 --> 00:18:51.549 led the entire NBA in three -point percentage. 00:18:51.869 --> 00:18:54.569 How is that even possible? We just spent 10 minutes 00:18:54.569 --> 00:18:56.529 talking about how he had to switch shooting hands 00:18:56.529 --> 00:18:58.609 because he couldn't shoot. Small sample size 00:18:58.609 --> 00:19:00.950 theater. It's the magic of small numbers. He 00:19:00.950 --> 00:19:03.049 took very, very few threes and he just happened 00:19:03.049 --> 00:19:05.640 to make it. So for a stretch of the season, he 00:19:05.640 --> 00:19:08.359 was shooting 100 % from deep. It was a statistical 00:19:08.359 --> 00:19:11.059 mirage, but it's a funny footnote for a guy whose 00:19:11.059 --> 00:19:14.079 range was historically limited to, you know, 00:19:14.099 --> 00:19:15.940 three feet from the basket. Okay, so he's in 00:19:15.940 --> 00:19:19.400 Sacramento. Then comes February 2022, the month 00:19:19.400 --> 00:19:21.819 of chaos. If you blinked, you missed a jersey 00:19:21.819 --> 00:19:26.220 change. Absolute chaos. February 8th, he gets 00:19:26.220 --> 00:19:28.549 traded to the Indiana Pacers. As part of that 00:19:28.549 --> 00:19:31.430 massive blockbuster deal that sent Tyrese Halliburton 00:19:31.430 --> 00:19:34.289 to Indiana and DeMantis Sabonis to Sacramento. 00:19:34.630 --> 00:19:37.809 Okay, so he's a pacer now. For four games. Four. 00:19:37.910 --> 00:19:40.349 That's it. Four games. He actually plays pretty 00:19:40.349 --> 00:19:42.970 well. He scores 17 points in one of them. And 00:19:42.970 --> 00:19:46.089 then on February 17th, the Pacers buy out his 00:19:46.089 --> 00:19:49.069 contract. They're in full rebuild mode. They 00:19:49.069 --> 00:19:50.890 don't need a veteran center taking up a roster 00:19:50.890 --> 00:19:54.109 spot. So for a moment, he's a free agent. For 00:19:54.109 --> 00:19:57.369 about 48 hours, yeah. On February 19th, he signs 00:19:57.369 --> 00:19:59.230 with the Chicago Bulls for the rest of the season. 00:19:59.509 --> 00:20:02.549 Three teams in less than two weeks. That is the 00:20:02.549 --> 00:20:05.369 life of a journeyman in the NBA. You are literally 00:20:05.369 --> 00:20:07.890 living out of a suitcase, learning new playbooks 00:20:07.890 --> 00:20:09.930 on the flight to the next city. It really is. 00:20:10.049 --> 00:20:12.549 He finishes out that season with the Bulls, provides 00:20:12.549 --> 00:20:14.750 some veteran toughness for their playoff push, 00:20:14.890 --> 00:20:17.339 but it's clear he's not... the Ironman starter 00:20:17.339 --> 00:20:19.759 anymore. He's a specialist. And then he goes 00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:22.880 unsigned for the vast majority of the 2022 -23 00:20:22.880 --> 00:20:25.259 season. It really looked like it might be over 00:20:25.259 --> 00:20:27.660 for him. He was doing some TV analyst work for 00:20:27.660 --> 00:20:30.279 ESPN. He looked and sounded like a guy who had 00:20:30.279 --> 00:20:33.500 moved on, like he was retired. It did. But then, 00:20:33.640 --> 00:20:36.160 right before the 2023 playoffs were about to 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:39.480 start, the phone rings. It's the Los Angeles 00:20:39.480 --> 00:20:42.710 Lakers. It's the reunion with LeBron James. The 00:20:42.710 --> 00:20:45.769 Lakers needed some insurance big men, some veteran 00:20:45.769 --> 00:20:48.069 bodies for their playoff run. They signed him 00:20:48.069 --> 00:20:50.529 on April 9th, the last day of the regular season. 00:20:50.650 --> 00:20:52.650 And he actually played. This wasn't just one 00:20:52.650 --> 00:20:55.009 of those Udonis Haslam cheerleading roles from 00:20:55.009 --> 00:20:58.670 the end of the bench. No, he gave them real meaningful 00:20:58.670 --> 00:21:01.750 minutes in six playoff games. Yeah. He was out 00:21:01.750 --> 00:21:03.809 there battling with Nikola Jokic in the Western 00:21:03.809 --> 00:21:06.490 Conference Finals. And his final moment as a 00:21:06.490 --> 00:21:09.019 Laker was actually. Kind of poetic, in a way. 00:21:09.220 --> 00:21:11.500 It's Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals. 00:21:11.500 --> 00:21:13.380 They're losing to Denver. The season is about 00:21:13.380 --> 00:21:15.900 to end. Thompson cuts to the rim. And he gets 00:21:15.900 --> 00:21:18.700 the ball and dunks it on an assist from LeBron 00:21:18.700 --> 00:21:21.200 James. Exactly. It felt like the perfect curtain 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:23.539 call. The two guys who won that title together 00:21:23.539 --> 00:21:26.299 in Cleveland connecting for one last bucket in 00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:29.279 L .A. A great way to end it. But he didn't take 00:21:29.279 --> 00:21:31.299 the bow. He didn't ride off into the sunset. 00:21:32.099 --> 00:21:35.579 Which brings us to Section 6. The return, the 00:21:35.579 --> 00:21:38.160 suspension, and the end of an era. He goes back 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:41.160 to Cleveland in September 2023. The prodigal 00:21:41.160 --> 00:21:44.859 son returns. He signs a one -year deal. But this 00:21:44.859 --> 00:21:47.380 return wasn't just a victory lap or a nostalgia 00:21:47.380 --> 00:21:50.259 tour. He was brought back with a specific purpose, 00:21:50.460 --> 00:21:53.849 to be the culture setter. The veteran voice in 00:21:53.849 --> 00:21:56.950 the locker room for a young, exciting Cavs team 00:21:56.950 --> 00:21:59.089 with Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. He 00:21:59.089 --> 00:22:01.250 was supposed to be the adult in the room. And 00:22:01.250 --> 00:22:04.750 then January 23, 2024, the press release drops 00:22:04.750 --> 00:22:06.690 from the league office and it just shattered 00:22:06.690 --> 00:22:09.650 that entire veteran mentor image. It was a bombshell. 00:22:09.930 --> 00:22:12.690 suspended 25 games without pay for violating 00:22:12.690 --> 00:22:15.829 the NBNBPA anti -drug program. Let's get specific 00:22:15.829 --> 00:22:17.970 here. What did he actually take? Because usually 00:22:17.970 --> 00:22:19.630 when an older player gets popped for something, 00:22:19.730 --> 00:22:21.529 people assume it's like a diuretic or something 00:22:21.529 --> 00:22:23.210 accidental in a supplement. No, this was not 00:22:23.210 --> 00:22:25.869 accidental. It was very specific. He tested positive 00:22:25.869 --> 00:22:29.690 for two substances, agutamorin and SARM, LGD 00:22:29.690 --> 00:22:32.509 -43 -3. Okay, for the listener who isn't a chemist 00:22:32.509 --> 00:22:34.210 or a professional bodybuilder, what are those 00:22:34.210 --> 00:22:36.890 things? Agutamorin is what's known as a growth 00:22:36.890 --> 00:22:40.559 hormone secretagogue. In simple terms, it stimulates 00:22:40.559 --> 00:22:42.920 your body's production of growth hormone. And 00:22:42.920 --> 00:22:46.880 SARM -LGD43 -3 is a selective androgen receptor 00:22:46.880 --> 00:22:50.009 modulator. Basically, it's designed to mimic 00:22:50.009 --> 00:22:51.950 testosterone's muscle -building and recovery 00:22:51.950 --> 00:22:54.430 effects, but without some of the nastier side 00:22:54.430 --> 00:22:57.329 effects of traditional anabolic steroids. Okay, 00:22:57.369 --> 00:22:59.470 so this is heavy -duty stuff. This isn't just 00:22:59.470 --> 00:23:01.670 a contaminated protein shake. It's strictly performance 00:23:01.670 --> 00:23:04.069 -enhancing. It's about recovery and muscle retention 00:23:04.069 --> 00:23:07.210 and strength. Precisely. It's exactly the kind 00:23:07.210 --> 00:23:09.809 of stuff you might take when you are a 32 -year 00:23:09.809 --> 00:23:11.569 -old trying to hold onto a body that is breaking 00:23:11.569 --> 00:23:14.529 down after 13 years of banging in the post with 00:23:14.529 --> 00:23:16.680 guys who are bigger and younger. But the irony 00:23:16.680 --> 00:23:19.119 is just, it's palpable. This is the Iron Man, 00:23:19.240 --> 00:23:21.480 the guy whose entire reputation was built on 00:23:21.480 --> 00:23:24.380 playing 447 straight games naturally, the guy 00:23:24.380 --> 00:23:27.700 who built his career on being durable. Why, at 00:23:27.700 --> 00:23:29.559 the very end of his career, when he's just a 00:23:29.559 --> 00:23:31.720 role player, does he turn to doping? That's the 00:23:31.720 --> 00:23:33.660 tragedy of it, isn't it? Was it desperation? 00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:36.140 Was it the fear of irrelevance? Was he just trying 00:23:36.140 --> 00:23:39.359 to keep up with guys 10 years younger than him? 00:23:39.640 --> 00:23:41.640 Whatever the reason, it really tarnished that. 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:45.000 Natural durability legacy. It puts a big unfortunate 00:23:45.000 --> 00:23:48.380 asterisk next to his longevity. So he served 00:23:48.380 --> 00:23:50.920 the 25 -game suspension. He came back. And here's 00:23:50.920 --> 00:23:53.079 where it gets confusing again. He actually played 00:23:53.079 --> 00:23:54.759 really well when he came back from the suspension. 00:23:55.079 --> 00:23:58.220 He shot a career -high 60 .8 % from the field 00:23:58.220 --> 00:24:01.150 that season. He was efficient. energetic which 00:24:01.150 --> 00:24:03.849 ironically might suggest that the stuff was uh 00:24:03.849 --> 00:24:06.670 working it suggests exactly that it suggests 00:24:06.670 --> 00:24:08.710 the chemistry lab was doing its job pretty effectively 00:24:08.710 --> 00:24:11.789 yeah he comes back for one final season the 2024 00:24:11.789 --> 00:24:15.549 -25 season the cabs re -sign him again but the 00:24:15.549 --> 00:24:19.180 tank was finally truly empty Yeah, the wheels 00:24:19.180 --> 00:24:21.200 fell off completely. Career lows across the board. 00:24:21.299 --> 00:24:25.160 1 .7 points per game, 3 .4 rebounds. He was playing 00:24:25.160 --> 00:24:27.059 garbage time minutes at the end of blowouts. 00:24:27.220 --> 00:24:29.559 And he went out on a pretty sour note, a moment 00:24:29.559 --> 00:24:31.759 that I think kind of encapsulates the weirdness 00:24:31.759 --> 00:24:34.220 of his later years. The game against the Raptors, 00:24:34.299 --> 00:24:38.200 February 13th, 2025. In Toronto, his hometown 00:24:38.200 --> 00:24:40.779 team is on the other side. Right. And the Cavs 00:24:40.779 --> 00:24:42.960 are blowing out the Raptors. The game is over. 00:24:43.079 --> 00:24:45.480 There are four seconds left on the clock. Thompson 00:24:45.480 --> 00:24:48.009 gets the ball. Now, the unwritten rule of basketball, 00:24:48.230 --> 00:24:52.089 the code, states when the game is decided, you 00:24:52.089 --> 00:24:54.529 just dribble out the clock. You show respect. 00:24:54.890 --> 00:24:56.869 You don't rub it in. You don't try to score. 00:24:57.049 --> 00:24:59.630 Thompson ignores the code. He drives to the rim 00:24:59.630 --> 00:25:01.769 and dunks it right as the clock expires. And 00:25:01.769 --> 00:25:04.049 the Raptors, understandably, took exception to 00:25:04.049 --> 00:25:06.289 that. Oh, they were furious. It sparked a huge 00:25:06.289 --> 00:25:08.529 on -court argument. Players were shoving. It 00:25:08.529 --> 00:25:11.440 was just... It was such a weird, messy way to 00:25:11.440 --> 00:25:14.079 fade out, not with a championship wave to the 00:25:14.079 --> 00:25:16.819 crowd, but with a meaningless garbage time dunk 00:25:16.819 --> 00:25:19.460 in a scuffle. It feels like a microcosm of the 00:25:19.460 --> 00:25:22.960 chaos. And speaking of chaos, we absolutely cannot 00:25:22.960 --> 00:25:25.200 tell the full story of Tristan Thompson without 00:25:25.200 --> 00:25:28.380 getting into Section 7, the personal life, the 00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:30.839 tabloids. We have to navigate this part carefully 00:25:30.839 --> 00:25:34.880 because it's a web. It is a sprawling, very complex 00:25:34.880 --> 00:25:37.599 web of relationships that is played out in real 00:25:37.599 --> 00:25:39.880 time in front of the entire world. And to be 00:25:39.880 --> 00:25:41.700 fair to him, before we get into the tabloid headlines, 00:25:41.920 --> 00:25:44.380 we should talk about his advocacy work, because 00:25:44.380 --> 00:25:46.519 this is the part of him that is genuinely admirable 00:25:46.519 --> 00:25:49.099 and often gets completely overshadowed by everything 00:25:49.099 --> 00:25:51.759 else. Absolutely. We have to start with his brother, 00:25:51.920 --> 00:25:54.980 Amari. Tell us about Amari. Amari is his youngest 00:25:54.980 --> 00:25:57.400 brother, and he suffers from Lennox -Gastaut 00:25:57.400 --> 00:26:01.099 syndrome. It's a rare and very, very severe form 00:26:01.099 --> 00:26:04.930 of epilepsy. Amari experiences seizures almost 00:26:04.930 --> 00:26:09.640 daily. He requires constant 247 care. And Tristan 00:26:09.640 --> 00:26:11.799 hasn't just written a check and walked away. 00:26:11.880 --> 00:26:14.440 He's been deeply involved. No, he's been hands 00:26:14.440 --> 00:26:17.059 on. He founded the Amari Thompson Fund back in 00:26:17.059 --> 00:26:19.500 2013 to support families dealing with epilepsy. 00:26:19.799 --> 00:26:22.319 He works closely with Epilepsy Toronto. He's 00:26:22.319 --> 00:26:23.980 a global ambassador for the Special Olympics. 00:26:24.180 --> 00:26:26.140 And there are countless stories from teammates 00:26:26.140 --> 00:26:28.220 and family about him spending time with Amari, 00:26:28.359 --> 00:26:30.599 caring for him. It's very clear that he loves 00:26:30.599 --> 00:26:32.779 his brother deeply and takes that responsibility 00:26:32.779 --> 00:26:35.680 seriously. And he also faced a devastating personal 00:26:35.680 --> 00:26:39.029 tragedy recently as well. Yes. His mother, Andrea, 00:26:39.250 --> 00:26:41.630 passed away suddenly from a heart attack in January 00:26:41.630 --> 00:26:45.269 of 2023. And by all accounts, she was the absolute 00:26:45.269 --> 00:26:47.869 rock of that family. Thompson posted afterward 00:26:47.869 --> 00:26:51.009 that his soul is empty. It was a devastating 00:26:51.009 --> 00:26:53.269 loss, and after her passing, he had to step up 00:26:53.269 --> 00:26:55.849 and become the primary legal guardian and caregiver 00:26:55.849 --> 00:26:58.869 for Amari. So you have this very devoted brother 00:26:58.869 --> 00:27:01.329 and son, a guy who is clearly carrying a very 00:27:01.329 --> 00:27:04.069 heavy load at home. And then you have the relationship 00:27:04.069 --> 00:27:06.190 timeline. Complexity is the only word for it. 00:27:06.250 --> 00:27:08.329 Let's try to map this out chronologically because 00:27:08.329 --> 00:27:11.210 it explains why if you ask a serious basketball 00:27:11.210 --> 00:27:13.950 fan about Kristen Thompson, they'll say rebounding 00:27:13.950 --> 00:27:16.769 and defense. But if you ask a random person on 00:27:16.769 --> 00:27:19.319 the street, they'll say Khloe Kardashian. It's 00:27:19.319 --> 00:27:21.039 a complete collision of worlds. Yeah. So first, 00:27:21.119 --> 00:27:23.359 there is Jordan Craig. She is the mother of his 00:27:23.359 --> 00:27:25.819 first child, his son Prince, who was born in 00:27:25.819 --> 00:27:29.160 December 2016. But the timeline gets murky immediately 00:27:29.160 --> 00:27:31.099 because they split up while she was pregnant 00:27:31.099 --> 00:27:33.420 with their son. And right around that time, enter 00:27:33.420 --> 00:27:36.720 Khloe Kardashian in 2016. And this is the moment 00:27:36.720 --> 00:27:39.619 that launches him from being an NBA star to a 00:27:39.619 --> 00:27:42.759 global celebrity. He becomes a regular character 00:27:42.759 --> 00:27:44.440 on Keeping Up with the Kardashians. And then 00:27:44.440 --> 00:27:47.039 the new show. The Kardashians. They start dating. 00:27:47.140 --> 00:27:49.000 It's very high profile. She gets pregnant. And 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:52.579 then the first major scandal breaks. Days, literally 00:27:52.579 --> 00:27:55.160 days before their daughter True is born in April 00:27:55.160 --> 00:27:58.279 of 2018. Photos and videos surface of Thompson 00:27:58.279 --> 00:28:01.599 with other women. It was a massive media firestorm. 00:28:01.700 --> 00:28:04.119 But they stayed together through that. Briefly. 00:28:04.480 --> 00:28:06.259 They tried to work it out for the sake of their 00:28:06.259 --> 00:28:08.900 new daughter. But they officially split in February 00:28:08.900 --> 00:28:12.119 2019 after another cheating scandal, this time 00:28:12.119 --> 00:28:13.900 involving Jordan Woods, who was a very close 00:28:13.900 --> 00:28:15.940 family friend of the Kardashians. OK, so they're 00:28:15.940 --> 00:28:19.720 done. But then the pandemic happened and we all 00:28:19.720 --> 00:28:22.380 did some crazy things during the pandemic. They 00:28:22.380 --> 00:28:24.559 did. They ended up quarantining together in 2020 00:28:24.559 --> 00:28:27.240 to co -parent True. They reconciled. Then they 00:28:27.240 --> 00:28:30.480 split up again in June 2021. Then they reconciled 00:28:30.480 --> 00:28:33.039 again in the fall of 2021. They even make the 00:28:33.039 --> 00:28:34.819 decision to have a second child together, this 00:28:34.819 --> 00:28:37.119 time via surrogate. And while that surrogacy 00:28:37.119 --> 00:28:39.099 process is happening, while their second child 00:28:39.099 --> 00:28:42.279 is on the way, the Marilyn Nichols lawsuit hits 00:28:42.279 --> 00:28:44.440 the press. This is the bombshell that changes 00:28:44.440 --> 00:28:47.259 everything. Marilyn Nichols files a paternity 00:28:47.259 --> 00:28:50.960 suit in 2021. She gives birth to a son, Theo, 00:28:51.259 --> 00:28:53.759 in December of that year. And the math showed 00:28:53.759 --> 00:28:56.960 that the child was conceived in March 2021, which 00:28:56.960 --> 00:28:58.960 is a time when Thompson was publicly back together 00:28:58.960 --> 00:29:01.299 with Khloe Kardashian. So let me get this straight. 00:29:01.380 --> 00:29:04.759 He is publicly apologizing to Chloe for fathering 00:29:04.759 --> 00:29:07.000 a child with another woman, all while they are 00:29:07.000 --> 00:29:09.319 privately expecting their own second child via 00:29:09.319 --> 00:29:12.160 surrogate together. Exactly that. It is a level 00:29:12.160 --> 00:29:14.339 of personal chaos that is almost hard to comprehend. 00:29:14.720 --> 00:29:17.500 Their son Tatum was eventually born in July of 00:29:17.500 --> 00:29:20.140 2022, and Thompson publicly confirmed he was 00:29:20.140 --> 00:29:22.619 Theo's father and apologized to Chloe in a public 00:29:22.619 --> 00:29:25.519 statement in January of 2022. It is. It's a lot. 00:29:25.619 --> 00:29:28.039 And it creates this incredible duality that defines 00:29:28.039 --> 00:29:30.920 his public image. It does. You can't separate 00:29:30.920 --> 00:29:33.980 Tristan Thompson, the rebounder, from Tristan 00:29:33.980 --> 00:29:36.759 Thompson, the tabloid fixture. They are intertwined. 00:29:37.160 --> 00:29:39.440 And you have to assume the scrutiny he faced 00:29:39.440 --> 00:29:42.619 at the court had to, at some point, impact the 00:29:42.619 --> 00:29:44.740 locker room dynamics and his focus on the court. 00:29:44.859 --> 00:29:46.839 So let's bring this all together. The outro. 00:29:47.200 --> 00:29:51.609 The synthesis. We have the Iron Man. who meticulously 00:29:51.609 --> 00:29:54.190 switched his dominant hand to save his career. 00:29:54.509 --> 00:29:56.950 We have the tabloid figure who seemed to have 00:29:56.950 --> 00:29:59.369 almost zero discipline in his personal relationships. 00:29:59.730 --> 00:30:02.549 We have the veteran leader who gets suspended 00:30:02.549 --> 00:30:05.130 for doping at the end of his career. It's a legacy 00:30:05.130 --> 00:30:08.569 of extreme jarring contrast. On the basketball 00:30:08.569 --> 00:30:10.750 court, for the vast majority of his career, he 00:30:10.750 --> 00:30:14.430 was defined by one word, availability. Wow. He 00:30:14.430 --> 00:30:16.750 got paid $82 million because you could count 00:30:16.750 --> 00:30:19.089 on him to be there every single night fighting 00:30:19.089 --> 00:30:21.390 for every loose ball. He was the ultimate safety 00:30:21.390 --> 00:30:23.509 net for LeBron James and those Cavs teams. But 00:30:23.509 --> 00:30:25.410 off the court. He was the opposite of a safety 00:30:25.410 --> 00:30:27.509 net. He was volatility. He was unpredictable. 00:30:27.990 --> 00:30:30.589 He was chaos. So what is the takeaway for you, 00:30:30.630 --> 00:30:32.589 the listener? We've looked at the stats, the 00:30:32.589 --> 00:30:35.029 scandals, the science of the hand switch. What 00:30:35.029 --> 00:30:37.430 does it all mean? I think it's about the fragility 00:30:37.430 --> 00:30:39.609 of reputation and it's about the definition of 00:30:39.609 --> 00:30:43.210 value. For 10 years, Tristan Thompson built a 00:30:43.210 --> 00:30:47.130 brand on reliability, grit, hard work, unsexy, 00:30:47.130 --> 00:30:50.759 but dependable. But the decision -making, both 00:30:50.759 --> 00:30:53.019 in his personal life and with that final PED 00:30:53.019 --> 00:30:56.579 suspension, it eroded that trust. It overwrote 00:30:56.579 --> 00:30:59.079 the brand he had built. It proves that durability 00:30:59.079 --> 00:31:01.960 can build you a legend, but it's judgment that 00:31:01.960 --> 00:31:04.180 preserves it. That's a really powerful distinction. 00:31:04.480 --> 00:31:06.559 Durability builds it. Judgment preserves it. 00:31:06.640 --> 00:31:08.859 Exactly. He will always be a champion. No one 00:31:08.859 --> 00:31:11.900 can ever take that 2016 ring away from him. But 00:31:11.900 --> 00:31:14.240 he won't be remembered just as a champion. He'll 00:31:14.240 --> 00:31:16.880 be remembered as this incredibly complex, messy, 00:31:17.039 --> 00:31:19.160 and contradictory figure who did whatever it 00:31:19.160 --> 00:31:21.059 took to stay on the court, even if he couldn't 00:31:21.059 --> 00:31:23.880 always keep it together off of it. And here is 00:31:23.880 --> 00:31:26.180 a final provocative thought for you to chew on. 00:31:27.339 --> 00:31:29.859 We marveled at him switching his shooting hand. 00:31:30.329 --> 00:31:32.690 a radical physical adjustment to solve a physical 00:31:32.690 --> 00:31:35.809 problem. It showed immense self -awareness and 00:31:35.809 --> 00:31:38.170 the ability to change a fundamental habit for 00:31:38.170 --> 00:31:40.930 the greater good of his game. But I wonder, if 00:31:40.930 --> 00:31:43.609 he had applied that same level of radical self 00:31:43.609 --> 00:31:45.930 -analysis, that same discipline to his decision 00:31:45.930 --> 00:31:47.970 -making off the court earlier in his career, 00:31:48.329 --> 00:31:50.910 would we be talking about a potential Hall of 00:31:50.910 --> 00:31:53.670 Famer today? or at the very least, a beloved 00:31:53.670 --> 00:31:56.470 Cleveland icon, rather than just a very wealthy, 00:31:56.589 --> 00:31:59.410 very famous, and very, very complicated juryman? 00:31:59.569 --> 00:32:01.509 That is the question that will hang over his 00:32:01.509 --> 00:32:03.549 jersey forever. Thanks for diving deep with us 00:32:03.549 --> 00:32:05.410 today on the complex career of Tristan Thompson. 00:32:05.549 --> 00:32:06.769 We'll catch you on the next one. Take care.