The last few years have been very difficult for point guard Isaiah Thomas. He was on top of the basketball world four years ago when he broke out as an NBA MVP candidate playing for the Boston Celtics.
He had just made two consecutive All-Star games in 2016 and 2017. He was the focal point of the Celtics’ attack and finished fifth in NBA voting in 2017, averaging 28.9 points, 5.9 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 0.9 steals in 33.8 minutes per game. He had excellent shooting splits of .463/.379/.909, overcoming his diminutive size with excellent quickness, speed and toughness.
But, things quickly fell apart for the Washington product after that. He suffered a hip injury during the 2017 NBA Playoffs and hasn’t been the same. Boston blindsided him as well, trading him to the Cleveland Cavaliers as part of the Kyrie Irving blockbuster deal.
That was the first in a long line of injuries that have derailed Thomas’s career. Following a trade to the Los Angeles Lakers midway through the 2018-19 season, he played in 17 games before getting hurt again.
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He missed the last 11 games of the season as he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right hip. He had surgery four consecutive years, as he also had thumb surgery in September of 2019 and another procedure on his right hip in 2020.
Thomas is now trying to make his way back into the NBA after playing in three games with the New Orleans Pelicans toward the end of the 2020-21 season. The Lakers are one team that has reportedly weighed the idea of bringing Thomas on.
Is this something that Los Angeles should do? Here are three reasons the Lakers should take a chance on Thomas.
