• Cameron Thomas is a natural scorer coming off one of the most productive offensive seasons by a freshman in recent NCAA history at LSU. Widely regarded as one of the top-25 prospects in the high school class of 2020 following his senior season at Oak Hill Academy (VA), the Virginia native headed to Baton Rouge with a reputation for scoring in bunches. Stepping into a massive role with the Tigers, Thomas lived up to that billing averaging 23 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game on solid efficiency numbers to earn All-SEC 1st Team Honors and propel LSU to an NCAA Tournament berth.
• Listed at 6’4 with a strong 210-pound frame to go along with solid length, Thomas has nice size for a shooting guard and is a capable all-around athlete.
• Hunting shots as aggressively as any player in the country as LSU’s first-option, Thomas is an instinctive three-level scorer with great footwork, versatility as a difficult shot maker, and tremendous one-on-one scoring ability. A crafty finisher, he thrived in transition as a freshman, but scored well operating on and off the ball for the Tigers as he was the target of many of their quick-hitters and the green light to try to find his rhythm creating his own shot.
• Possessing the physical tools to hold his own defensively, Thomas was more consistent some games than others last season—particularly off the ball.
Advanced Stats
• With three-quarters of his shots in the half court coming from the perimeter split evenly between catch and shoot and dribble jumpers, Thomas proved to be a prolific, versatile shot-maker from the first game of his freshman year. Averaging 0.93 points per jump shot in the half court [54th percentile], he often leaned heavily on his ability to make contested shots from all over the floor as he needed little daylight to rise and fire. Scoring under 18 points just twice this season, he showed the ability to create separation one-on-one, but routinely drained high degree of difficulty jumpers under duress all season.
• As aggressive as Thomas was from the perimeter, he was extremely opportunistic around the rim as well—particularly in transition. With a quarter of his possession coming in the open floor, he averaged 1.11 points per Transition possession [67th percentile]. While he is not the most emphatic finisher, he did a very good job weaving around defenders with crafty footwork and finishing with good body control.
• Scoring 1.11 points per shot around the rim in the half court [46th percentile], Thomas is more aggressive as a shot creator and a finisher than he is overly dynamic and he did a better job drawing fouls as a slasher than he did converting over length. An excellent free throw shooter, his ability to pick and choose his spots around the rim could give his efficiency a boost at the next level.
• Adding little as a passer, Thomas nonetheless scored with impressive efficiency for a volume scorer in a power conference, let alone a 19-year-old freshman. Some of that can be traced to his strikingly low turnover rate. He was far more likely to get up a difficult shot last season than commit an aimless turnover.
Defensive Analysis
• Thomas is an inconsistent defender with the tools to hold his own but had some ups and downs on and off the ball as a freshman. Showing some fight as an individual defender in spots in LSU’s switch-heavy system, he allowed 0.76 points per Isolation possession [45th percentile].
