Houston has one of the best-kept secrets in the NBA, but it likely won’t remain that way for long.
Over the past couple of seasons, the Rockets have steadily become a competitive team. One of the biggest reasons for that is the veteran talent that Houston has brought in since hiring Ime Udoka.
Of course, the driving force behind Houston’s success has still been its young talent, and Amen Thompson has been a star in the making since arriving in 2023. While Thompson only has two seasons of NBA basketball under his belt, he already has a reputation for being one of the top perimeter defenders in the league and has cemented himself as one of the NBA’s best athletes.
Those traits and his consistent offensive progression have made him one of the faces of the Rockets’ future. According to a recent article from CBS Sports’ Adam Finkelstein, Thompson could also soon be one of the faces of Team USA’s future.
In Finkelstein’s article proposing some of the top young options for the 2028 Olympic roster, Thompson was listed third, behind only Paolo Banchero and Cooper Flagg and just ahead of Chet Holmgren.
Thompson’s appeal to USA Basketball is quite clear. His defense and on-ball speed could help Team USA break things open in a tense international setting.
With likely All-Star appearances between now and the Olympics, Thompson could easily cement himself on the roster. With Kevin Durant set to be his teammate in Houston for the foreseeable future, it’s possible that a couple of Rockets end up representing the Americans in Los Angeles if the future Hall of Famer decides to give it another go at the Olympics.