CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – If the NBA is unable to resume the season, there’s a good chance that Tristan Thompson will have played his last game as a Cavalier.
Thompson hopes that’s not the case.
“It hasn't crossed my mind at all,” Thompson said in a Zoom call with reporters Thursday afternoon. “I don't like to think too far ahead or about maybes or what-ifs.”
Like his teammates and the rest of the NBA, Thompson is home in Los Angeles waiting for definitive word from the league office as to what is next – will they or won’t they finish the season.
“Do I want basketball to come back? Of course, because I'm running out of things to watch on Netflix and HGTV,” Thompson said with a laugh. “You know it’s bad when you’ve watched Chopped Jr., the same episode three times.
“I would love for basketball to come back but it's not my decision.”
Thompson has the same concern as everyone else does about possibly returning.
“Of course, I’d love to be back on the court and going at guys, grabbing rebounds over guys and having coaches frustrated and calling timeouts,” Thompson said. “Safety is the most important thing right now for our business.”
The COVID-19 pandemic that has swept the world shut down the NBA in mid-March, and much of the country followed commissioner Adam Silver’s lead quickly after.
Silver and the NBAPA have pondered a variety of scenarios to resume the season including having everyone play at one or two locations – Las Vegas and or Orlando.
Thompson is in favor of whatever is the safest, but despite his desire to complete the season, he has concerns.
“No one wants to bring something home,” Thompson said. “I think that’s the main goal. No one wants to bring anything home. Everyone has family, whether it’s respiratory issues or kids that are young or older parents that have had issues in the past.”
The financial ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic could ripple for years to come.
As a pending free agent, Thompson could find the market to be much tighter than originally projected.
“For me, I don’t even get into that,” Thompson said. “I’m not thinking about free agency. I’m thinking about whether or not we’re going to get some games going. In terms of the free agency stuff, I let Rich Paul handle that. He’s the best in the game so for me, it’s keeping the main focus the main focus and that’s staying ready to play some basketball whenever that may be.”
Thompson was drafted by the Cavs fourth overall in the 2011 NBA Draft, a class that also produced Kyrie Irving No. 1 overall.
His career in Cleveland has run the gamut from being the league’s worst team to climbing a 52-year mountaintop and winning it all in 2016.
“The memories have been great,” Thompson said. “Getting drafted in 2011, winning a championship, being a lottery pick. We’ve had the bottom to the top. It's been a great experience.
“I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
