David Thompson Gets Overlooked As A Leaper

[HomoSapien]

For most of us here, including me, David Thompson was way before our time. Although his talents are no secret, I feel like he gets overlooked as a leaper. In a lot of recent threads, people have mentioned MJ, Kobe, Carter, and Wade as the most athletic twos. I think it's worth taking a moment to appreciate Thompson's gifts. His athleticism would still stand out today, IMO.

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[HeartBreakKid]

I think in part it's because people try to overlay athleticism with general goodness. For what ever reason, people want to believe that the very best players are also the best run and jump athletes.

Carter's raw popularity and slam dunk theatrics saved him from being a bit underrated in those regards as well, though it's not uncommon for people to say Wade and Bryant are more athletic than him when they're really just more smart and skilled. (usually theyll say strength is the underrated factor, which is crazy cause Carter is as strong as a forward)

I would predict that 'strength' would be the reason why people would rate better known names over David Thompson as well. Need that rationalization for why he was not THAT dominant of a player.


As for the topic of leaping, yup....pretty far up there with the goat leapers. Don't think many would debate that.

[penbeast0]

Funny because I would say that's ALL he gets remembered for. That or the cocaine issues. He was actually quite a varied and talented scorer, the guy Michael Jordan says he copied his game after, though never impressive defensively like Jordan could be.

[70sFan]

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Here is a good video showing Thompson's skills and varied scoring repertoire. He was excellent shooter, so it's not thhat he relied on his athleticism strictly.

[Goudelock]

If I learned anything about Thompson as a scorer, it was that he was really good at making contested jumpers because he could just elevate over defenders. Here is my (unecessarily negative) scouting report from a few years ago.

To briefly describe his game, Thompson was strictly a scoring guard. He had very little in the way of playmaking skills, and his handle was mediocre at best. The majority of his points were scored via the contested jumpshots in the halfcourt, rather than drives, because he lacked the handle to maneuver past his man (unlike someone like Julius Erving). The only time that he was able to take advantage of his athleticism was in the open court or on putbacks, where his legendary leaping ability and athleticism was put to use. It's a testament to his great talent that he could have as good a FG% as he did, considering all of the tough shots he was forced to take. His defense was below average and he didn't seem to put a whole lot of effort into it.

[Samurai]

For most of us here, including me, David Thompson was way before our time. Although his talents are no secret, I feel like he gets overlooked as a leaper. In a lot of recent threads, people have mentioned MJ, Kobe, Carter, and Wade as the most athletic twos. I think it's worth taking a moment to appreciate Thompson's gifts. His athleticism would still stand out today, IMO.

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I am not sure what you mean by "overlooked". To me, the first thing that comes to mind when I hear the name David Thompson is "legendary leaper". Maybe your definition of "overlooked" is different but seeing Thompson fly though the air will be forever stamped in my brain.

[Statlanta]

Can a person nicknamed Skywalker be overlooked as a dunker?

[penbeast0]

For most of us here, including me, David Thompson was way before our time. Although his talents are no secret, I feel like he gets overlooked as a leaper. In a lot of recent threads, people have mentioned MJ, Kobe, Carter, and Wade as the most athletic twos. I think it's worth taking a moment to appreciate Thompson's gifts. His athleticism would still stand out today, IMO.

Thanks for making me feel even older. I remember him with Jim Valvano at NC State.

[DNice68]

Funny because I would say that's ALL he gets remembered for. That or the cocaine issues. He was actually quite a varied and talented scorer, the guy Michael Jordan says he copied his game after, though never impressive defensively like Jordan could be.

He is remembered for being a leaper, but Jordan’s other hero Marques Johnson doesn’t!

[youtube][/youtube]

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[youtube][/youtube]

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[Samurai]

Funny because I would say that's ALL he gets remembered for. That or the cocaine issues. He was actually quite a varied and talented scorer, the guy Michael Jordan says he copied his game after, though never impressive defensively like Jordan could be.

He is remembered for being a leaper, but Jordan’s other hero Marques Johnson doesn’t!

[youtube][/youtube]

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[youtube][/youtube]

Watch on YouTube

Totally agree that M.J. is more overlooked as a leaper than Skywalker. I remember watching M.J. at UCLA and my lasting impression of him was as a fundamentally solid player who did many things well but wasn't especially outstanding in any one area. I certainly don't remember M.J. as the high-flyer that DT (or Darrell Griffith, Larry Kenon, or Darnell Hillman) were. Maybe its because M.J. didn't have any slam dunk contest highlights; funny how impressions get made since he clearly was a leaper but is completely overlooked in that regard in my feeble memory.

[DNice68]

Funny because I would say that's ALL he gets remembered for. That or the cocaine issues. He was actually quite a varied and talented scorer, the guy Michael Jordan says he copied his game after, though never impressive defensively like Jordan could be.

He is remembered for being a leaper, but Jordan’s other hero Marques Johnson doesn’t!

[youtube][/youtube]

Watch on YouTube

[youtube][/youtube]

Watch on YouTube

Totally agree that M.J. is more overlooked as a leaper than Skywalker. I remember watching M.J. at UCLA and my lasting impression of him was as a fundamentally solid player who did many things well but wasn't especially outstanding in any one area. I certainly don't remember M.J. as the high-flyer that DT (or Darrell Griffith, Larry Kenon, or Darnell Hillman) were. Maybe its because M.J. didn't have any slam dunk contest highlights; funny how impressions get made since he clearly was a leaper but is completely overlooked in that regard in my feeble memory.

He relied on skill, more than his athleticism, but it was there!

[penbeast0]

I remember Marques being very athletic but more in terms of fluidity and coordination than highlight dunks.

[HomoSapien]

Funny because I would say that's ALL he gets remembered for.

It's certainly what he's remembered for when he's remembered, but I think he often gets forgotten altogether. This is just a thread to give him some love.

[NO-KG-AI]

I definitely forget him when I name the best leapers off the top of my head, and then when I remember some of his highlights, I feel stupid for forgetting, because the ease and the height at which he got up is insane. He really looked like his legs were spring loaded.

[xxSnEaKyPxx]

I think in part it's because people try to overlay athleticism with general goodness. For what ever reason, people want to believe that the very best players are also the best run and jump athletes.

Carter's raw popularity and slam dunk theatrics saved him from being a bit underrated in those regards as well, though it's not uncommon for people to say Wade and Bryant are more athletic than him when they're really just more smart and skilled. (usually theyll say strength is the underrated factor, which is crazy cause Carter is as strong as a forward)

I would predict that 'strength' would be the reason why people would rate better known names over David Thompson as well. Need that rationalization for why he was not THAT dominant of a player.


As for the topic of leaping, yup....pretty far up there with the goat leapers. Don't think many would debate that.

Whaaaaaat?

David Thompson was an incredibly dominant player. Drugs/injuries cut his prime shorter, but he was absolutely a dominant player.

[penbeast0]

Whaaaaaat?

David Thompson was an incredibly dominant player. Drugs/injuries cut his prime shorter, but he was absolutely a dominant player.

Not sure I would call either Thompson or Carter an incredibly dominant player. Incredibly dominant scorer, absolutely, but don't see either being a guy whose in the MVP type conversations.

[xxSnEaKyPxx]

Whaaaaaat?

David Thompson was an incredibly dominant player. Drugs/injuries cut his prime shorter, but he was absolutely a dominant player.

Not sure I would call either Thompson or Carter an incredibly dominant player. Incredibly dominant scorer, absolutely, but don't see either being a guy whose in the MVP type conversations.

Thompson made the All-NBA first team twice.

Not sure that you have to be in the MVP conversation to be considered a dominant player, but maybe we just have a different perspective on what dominant is.