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With Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James being in the latter stages of his career, he is used to competing against players who grew up watching him. This is a nod to James\u2019 longevity, playing in his 23rd season and perhaps more on the horizon.<\/p>\n
One of those players is Houston Rockets forward Amen Thompson, who is already a premier 3-and-D talent in today\u2019s NBA. However, Thompson had to embrace a new role with Fred VanVleet injured, needing to become a point guard.<\/p>\n
To better prepare himself for running an offense, the 22-year-old went to the film room and studied James along with fellow former Lakers teammate Rajon Rondo, via Marc J. Spears of Andscape<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u201cI love watching those type of guys to see how they attack when given the opportunity,\u201d Thompson told Andscape. \u201cI also like how they can command the floor. I\u2019ve been a LeBron, Westbrook and John Wall fan. And then I started watching Rondo and was like, \u2018Yo, this man is nice.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Rondo notably won a championship with L.A. in 2020 and he was a crucial piece due to his ability to structure an offense. He had great chemistry with Anthony Davis and his vision on the floor was second to none, creating easy looks. Thompson grew inspired by his play due to the similarities in their games, seeing how Rondo impacted the game outside of not being a respected shooter:<\/p>\n \u201cI knew he was nice, but I didn\u2019t know he was that nice,\u201d he continued his praise for Rondo, who played in the NBA from 2006 to 2022.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I started watching a lot of him because of the way he impacts the game while they are letting him shoot, but he still gets to where he wants and distributes and grabs 20 rebounds at 6-foot-2.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The Rockets\u2019 rising star 3-point shot is still a work in progress, but he is finding ways to be effective as a ball-handler and slasher to produce for his team.<\/p>\n Thompson is averaging a career-high in assists so far, although it is only his third season in the league. Stepping into that facilitator role is greatly needed for Houston and studying James and Rondo should only benefit him in the long run.<\/p>\n Luka Doncic missed two games on the Lakers\u2019 recent road trip due to personal reasons and it was later revealed that it was because of the birth of his second daughter.<\/p>\n When Doncic took to social media to announce the news, James and other teammates made sure to congratulate him<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n
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LeBron James congratulates Luka Doncic on birth of daughter<\/h2>\n