Tyrus Thomas

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Tyrus Thomas
Position Forward
Height 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Weight 215 lb (98 kg)
League NBA
Team Chicago Bulls
Jersey #24
Born August 17, 1986 (1986-08-17) (age 21)
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Nationality American
High school McKinley Senior, Baton Rouge
College LSU
Draft 4th overall, 2006
Portland Trail Blazers
Pro career 2006–present
Awards 2006 SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year, 2006 SEC Freshman of the Year
Official profile Info Page

Tyrus Wayne Thomas (born August 17, 1986, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is an American professional basketball player who played one season of college basketball at LSU and is now a member of the NBA's Chicago Bulls.

Contents

[edit] High school career

In high school, Thomas tried out for his freshman basketball team but was cut. He only played organized basketball in his junior and senior years at McKinley High School in Baton Rouge, which is a stone's throw from LSU's campus, but never really built up enough recruiting hype to be considered a top 100 prospect. As a junior he was a mere 6-6 and 190 pounds, and when he officially committed to LSU they did not initially have a scholarship for him. One later opened up when a JUCO recruit was kicked off his team and his scholarship offer was rescinded. Thomas grew to 6-7 ½, 200 pounds as a high school senior, and averaged 16 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks per game, good enough only for the all-second team in Louisiana.

[edit] College career

In the 2005-2006 season, Thomas was a redshirt freshman and moved into the starting lineup as a power forward. Because of his leaping ability, Thomas developed a reputation as an outstanding shot blocker, rebounder, and dunker during his time at LSU. On the year, Thomas averaged 12.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.1 blocks in 26 minutes per game on over 60% shooting from the field.

Thomas played in the SEC. His team won their conference with a 14-2 record, and then lost to Florida in the semifinals of the SEC tournament with Thomas out resting his ankle for the NCAA tournament. LSU also played a moderately difficult out-of-conference schedule, going on the road to play against teams like West Virginia, Cincinnati, Ohio State and UConn. The UConn game was Thomas's coming out party at the national level, scoring 15 points with 13 rebounds and 7 blocks against arguably the best front-court in the nation on their home floor on national television.

[edit] 2006 NCAA Tournament

Thomas entered the 2006 NCAA Tournament still recovering from a sprained ankle suffered in the February 25 game against Kentucky that caused him to miss the last two regular-season games and the SEC Tournament. However, the injury did not hamper him as he continued the pattern of the regular season, his performances in the 2006 NCAA Tournament improved with every passing game as #4 seed LSU advanced to their first Final Four since 1986. His minutes were somewhat limited by the injury in the 1st round game against No. 13 seed Iona and the 2nd round game against No. 12 seed Texas A&M but he was back to form by LSU's Atlanta Regional Semifinal (Sweet 16) matchup against perennial power and overall top seed Duke. In the Duke game, Thomas scored 9 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, and blocked 5 shots despite being limited to 25 minutes due to early foul trouble as LSU held Duke to a 27.7 percent field goal percentage and only 54 points, the school's lowest output since 1996. Thomas was even more dominant in the Regional Final (Elite Eight) win against No. 2 seed Texas, scoring 21 points, grabbing 13 rebounds, and blocking three shots. These performances earned Thomas the Atlanta Regional's Most Valuable Player award.

[edit] NBA career

On April 17, 2006, Thomas announced his intention to enter the NBA Draft, and signed with an agent, removing his college eligibility. On June 28, 2006, Thomas was drafted fourth overall in the 2006 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. Thomas was then traded along with forward Viktor Khryapa to the Chicago Bulls for forward-center LaMarcus Aldridge, the No. 2 pick.

Thomas made his regular season debut against the Miami Heat on October 31, scoring 4 points, while grabbing 5 rebounds and blocking 2 shots. One of his blocks was against fellow LSU alum, former Heat center Shaquille O'Neal. In the game, Thomas had his nose broken by Heat swingman James Posey. In pursuit of a rebound, Posey smashed a forearm against Thomas's nose and broke it in the process.[1]

Thomas put his athletic skills to good use off the bench on occasion. At the same time, a lack of basketball instincts and fundamentals conspired against him in an erratic rookie season.

In mid-February, he was chosen to attend the Sprite Slam Dunk Contest at the NBA All-Star Game.

[edit] NBA Career Statistics

Regular season Team GP MPG SPG BPG RPG APG PPG
2006-2007 Bulls 72 13.4 0.6 1.1 3.7 0.6 5.2
Playoffs Team GP MPG SPG BPG RPG APG PPG
2007 Bulls 51 17.4 0.7 1.0 4.6 1.2 6.4

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/bulls/2007-02-06-thomas-fine_x.htm

[edit] Career highs/accomplishments

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Bulls 108, Heat 66, USATODAY.com, October 31, 2006
  2. ^ NBA.com: Roy Headlines 2006-07
    NBA T-Mobile All-Rookie Team
  3. ^ NBA.com : Tyrus Thomas Career Stats Page

[edit] External links

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Chicago Bulls current roster

2 Sefolosha | 5 Nocioni | 6 Brown | 7 Gordon | 9 Deng | 12 Hinrich | 13 Noah | 15 Simmons | 20 Curry | 21 Duhon | 24 Thomas | 32 Hughes | 34 Gray | 35 Nichols | 90 Gooden | Coach Del Negro
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2006 NBA Draft
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