Former Blue Devil Lance Thomas Discusses Path to NBA
By Chris Brown
Former Blue Devil Lance Thomas opens up on difficult path to the NBA after going undrafted.
Former Duke power forward Lance Thomas took a very interesting and unconventional path into the NBA, but was able to work hard and become a solid contributor in the league. He recently wrote about his journey in an article for the Player’s Tribune.
The most difficult adjustment for Lance Thomas was constantly travelling and struggled believing he was good enough to make it into the NBA, but ultimately his love for basketball kept him going. He notes that his time at Duke helped him immensely, with Coach K encouraging him to always give his best effort and “master the intangibles”.
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Lance Thomas played a key role at Duke, helping the Blue Devils win the 2010 National Championship. He did not put record stellar stats as a college player averaging 4.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. Even in the NBA D-League the 6-9 forward didn’t have great numbers but built a reputation as a very hard worker which has helped him put together a solid NBA career as a role player most recently averaging 8.2 points per game last season with the New York Knicks.
Thomas shared his story as encouragement and motivation for other players who may have also gone undrafted and hope to make the NBA. As a free agent, he just got a huge 4-year, $27 million deal to stay with the Knicks after getting interest from a lot of different teams in a record-breaking offseason for NBA contracts. Several other former Duke Basketball players are taking a similar path to try to get to the NBA after going undrafted. Seth Curry is the most recent example after dominating in the D-League to earn an NBA contract, and he’s now also hoping to cash in for next season as a free agent.
Additionally, former Blue Devil Andre Dawkins is currently competing in the summer league with the hope of impressing NBA scouts and Quinn Cook is coming off an excellent season winning NBADL Rookie of the Year and earning a spot in the D-League All-Star game. Center Marshall Plumlee went undrafted this year but will possibly be joining Thomas on the Knicks after signing a guaranteed rookie free agent deal for the upcoming season after impressing in workouts.
Next: Duke Basketball Makes History in NBA Draft
Make sure to check out his article here and we’ll be sure to keep you updated on Lance Thomas and all former Blue Devils in the NBA and the Development League here on Ball Durham.