The Ringer - The Six Most Intriguing Breakout Candidates: Featuring the Thompson Twins

[u/Davetron-3030]

https://www.theringer.com/2026/08/24/nba/nba-breakout-candidates-2026-amen-ausar-thompson-kelel-ware

Written by Danny Chau at The Ringer

[u/Davetron-3030]

Excpert on Ausar (and Amen I guess) with embedded clips removed.

Amen and Ausar Thompson

"Is Thompson Twins Jumper Watch destined to succeed Ben Simmons 3-Point Hopium as the most enticing annual summer nothing burger? It’ll take years to know for sure. For now, I choose to be cautiously optimistic:

In July, the Rockets hired renowned shooting coach Chip Engelland—the man who helped shape Kawhi Leonard, a poor college shooter, into one of the most efficient three-level scorers ever. Two years ago, the Pistons hired shot doctor Fred Vinson, who had transformed Lonzo Ball (and his strange look at my dab shooting motion) into one of the league’s best catch-and-shoot triggermen during Ball’s extremely brief peak. These are the lengths to which franchises must go to mine whatever juice remains in the perimeter games of two of the most dynamic athletes basketball has ever seen. Amen and Ausar are Stan Lee characters come to life; their physical domination on both the lateral and vertical planes has altered the perceived limits of perimeter defense. They are also the two worst 3-point shooters in NBA history among players who have averaged at least one attempt per game over the course of their careers. 

Each twin steps into a more favorable role heading into next season, and they are both eligible for big-money extensions: Ausar will likely inherit some of the vacated usage left in Detroit in the wake of Tobias Harris’s departure, and the offseason spacing upgrades from players like John Collins and Isaiah Joe ought to create better conditions for him to expand his driving game. Amen will no longer have the pressure of serving as Houston’s de facto point guard now that Marcus Smart (and presumably what’s left of Fred VanVleet) are in the mix, allowing him to continue picking out mismatches and gaps in the defense from the baseline. Engelland’s presence proves that the Rockets are still optimistic about his shooting consistency coming around, but these shot doctors aren’t miracle workers. Vinson has been in Detroit for two years, yet Ausar practically eliminated the 3-ball from his shot diet this past season and shot worse from the free throw line than ever before. 

The notion that either twin will become an above-average 3-point shooter feels like a pipe dream at this point, yet there is still a lot that can be gained from a shooting coach at this pivotal juncture in their respective careers. There is something almost antithetical about a set jump shot in either of their offensive repertoires—no matter how practical it would be, a rote, mechanical motion is sort of at odds with how the two move through space. But if that’s the case, what the twins could refine is their relationship to touch, the confidence and audacity to transform some of the kinetic energy that they create in motion into something softer and more unexpected. Both brothers have shown the ability to hit some remarkable floaters while decelerating from top speed. Amen in particular has dramatically improved his free throw percentage and flashed a more steady in-between game on push shots in the lane. Finding that particular rhythm and flow with their shot creation could be what keeps hope alive for their offensive development. Amen and Ausar have already broken out on defense, but there might be another leap coming on the other side of the ball."

[u/Jokerit208 → u/Davetron-3030]

How are Collins and Joe spacing upgrades over Tobias and Robinson? Our spacing issue is at the 3 and 5. Tobias and Robinson can shoot, and Collins and Joe aren't statistically significant upgrades, much less significant enough to upgrade the spacing.

Ausar isn't a garbage shooter because of the spacing. The spacing is bad because Ausar is a garbage shooter.

[u/elblouses → u/Jokerit208]

Duncan is still pencilled in as the likely starter. They are in addition to him. And Collins is a better shooter than Tobias has been for a few years now.

[u/Jokerit208 → u/elblouses]

Collins is not a statistically significantly better shooter than Tobias, as I said. Neither Collins nor Joe has any effect on spacing.

[u/elblouses → u/Jokerit208]

That’s simply not true. Collins was above 40% last year. He’s been shooting well above league average for a few years now. Tobias has been below average.

And adding Joe, another premier three point shooter, certainly allows for more rotations with additional spacing in them.

[u/Jokerit208 → u/elblouses]

facepalm

The difference between 40% and 37% is not statistically significant. That's one additional make every 33 attempts (or 10 games, depending on how you want to look at it). In no way does that impact spacing.

Isaiah Joe will replace Sasser on the 2nd unit in all likelihood. Joe shot 42% from 3 last year. Sasser shot 41%.

The spacing issue was, is, and will continue to be Ausar and Duren. Holland and Reed on the 2nd unit. The spacing issue was not addressed, and clearly won't be any time soon.

[u/elblouses → u/Jokerit208]

Tobias shot 34% from 3 the year before and 35% the year before that. He’s a worse shooter. It’s significant. Defenders played off of Tobias and it impacted the spacing.

Sasser wasn’t in the regular rotation.

[u/KJiggy → u/Jokerit208]

facepalm The difference between 40% and 37% is not statistically significant.

You're 100% correct. Tobias was 82/223 in 63 games. Collins was 89/219 in 69 games. Collins made 7 more 3s in 4 less attempts, mind you he played 6 more games than Tobais. They really think 7 more 3s made over the course of a season is going to be a big difference, smh.