Tristan's off-season
People forget how young the core is and that they are still not even in their primes yet.
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The rebounding machine spent his summer and holdout period working out across the country, but primarily in Miami getting in three-a-day workouts six days a week.
His agenda comprised of an early morning on-court workout followed by a rigorous core weight-lifting program and in the afternoon, a final on-court session.
And outside of those training shifts, he said he "ran a lot."
That's the impact Thompson wanted to have upon returning. He even knocked down a 15-foot jumper off a pick-and-pop play. That surprised just about everyone, except the power forward himself.
"This is what I worked for all summer long," he said. "A lot of players, when they get to the NBA, they have to figure out what their niche is and then once you figure that out, it's time to blossom. It's like a caterpillar turning into a butterfly. I'm just going to keep growing my game."
He also used his extended summer to venture off beyond what he's accustomed to doing.
"I did some ball handling on the wing and kind of pick-and-roll action," he said. " I was working out like a guard with a lot of guard drills. Obviously doing that, I wasn't expecting to come in and play the (small forward), it was just getting a feel for the ball and getting outside of my comfort zone. When you got time on your hands, it's cool to explore and get a different feel for other spots on the court."
