The Detroit Pistons signed Ausar Thompson to a five-year, $155 million extension this offseason. The Ausar Thompson contract was not a surprise. He is entering his fourth NBA season with the team.
Thompson is only 23 years old and was the fifth overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. He is a very good defender. Thompson made first-team All-Defense and finished third in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2025-26. There are still questions about his offensive game. Will the Pistons regret giving him this contract?
His Offense Could Make the Pistons Regret the Ausar Thompson Contract
Last season, Thompson played in 73 games and averaged 9.9 points per game, 5.7 rebounds per game, 3.1 assists per game, 0.9 blocks per game, and 2.0 steals per game, which led the NBA. If he is going to live up to his contract, Thompson is going to need to take a major jump in his points per game production.
ESPN Graded the Extension a B-Minus
Zach Kram of ESPN wonders if his offense is going to be the reason why the Pistons are going to regret giving him a long-term deal. Kram graded the extension a B-minus and pointed at a jump shot that has gone backward. Thompson made seven 3-pointers all of last season. Kram said,
“Amen isn’t a 3-point marksman, either, but he at least improved to 78% at the free-throw line last season, suggesting untapped shooting potential, while Ausar made just 57% of his free throws. Amen has also been better than his brother at scoring on drives and handling the ball; there’s a reason he averaged 18.3 PPG last season to Ausar’s mere 9.9.
That’s not to say Ausar is completely unproductive; he’s effective in transition and a solid offensive rebounder (a must, given how often he hangs out near the basket) and the Pistons have still been better with him on the court than off, even on the offensive end.
Yet that considerable weakness will limit Thompson’s long-term ceiling and potentially complicate Detroit’s roster-building plans, which drops this extension’s grade a couple notches. In the modern NBA, it’s not easy to win with a perimeter player who’s such a non-shooter, and Thompson’s new contract brings into greater question Jalen Duren‘s future in Detroit, as the All-Star center lingers in restricted free agency.”
Ausar shot 52.5% from the field and only 25% from 3-point range. Those numbers are going to have to go up, and so does the free throw shooting percentage. Thompson must make a leap in his fourth season with the Pistons. With Jalen Duren currently unsigned, he is under pressure to live up to his contract.
Contract Expires After the 2031-32 Season
It will be interesting to see how good the Pistons will be over the next several seasons. Thompson’s new money starts in 2027-28 at roughly $31 million a year, and his contract will expire after the 2031-32 season. If he can pair a big offensive jump with that defense, the contract will be worth it for Detroit, no doubt.
If Thompson’s ceiling is not much higher on the offensive end of the floor, it could be a potential problem for the Pistons. It is too early to tell if this contract will be buyer’s remorse for Detroit. If Thompson does put up great offensive production over the next couple of seasons, then the contract will look like a bargain.
