Tristan Thompson

Tristan Trevor James Thompson is a Canadian professional basketball player who plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Thompson is a one time NBA Champion and is widely recognized as one of the best rebounding centers in the league.

Thompson played one season of college basketball for the Texas Longhorns in 2010–11. He averaged 13.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game and won the team's Most Valuable Player award, as voted on by his teammates. He was also awarded the Big 12 Freshman of the Year honours as well as first-team NABC All-District 8 and USBWA All-District VII honours. He led the team in rebounding, blocked shots, double-doubles, and field goal percentage while ranking second in scoring. He helped Texas end the 2010–11 season with a 28–8 record and advance to the NCAA Tournament Round of 32.

Thompson was drafted as the fourth overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Even though Thompson came off the bench for the first three months of his rookie season, he still made his presence felt on the court on both ends of the floor. With Varejao ruled out indefinitely, Thompson was inserted into the starting lineup at the center position for the remainder of the regular season, and he did not disappoint. He finished the season with averages of 8.2 points and 6.5 rebounds in 60 games as he earned NBA All-Rookie second team honours, becoming the first Canadian to ever earn All-Rookie team honours in the NBA.

With the Cavaliers acquiring LeBron James and Kevin Love during the 2014-2015 off-season, Thompson played off the bench for most of the season providing energy and stability to the second unit. Thompson got the chance to start again as Kevin Love dislocated his shoulder in the first round of the 2015 NBA Playoffs. He helped the Cavaliers reach the 2015 NBA Finals and solidified his place as one of the best rebounders in the league. The 2015-2016 season saw the Cleveland Cavaliers reach the Finals for a second consecutive time. Thompson played a huge role as the Cavaliers went onto make history by coming back from a 3–1 deficit against the Golden State Warriors to win the series in seven games, thus bringing a 52-year championship drought to an end for Cleveland.

In 2016-17 season, Thompson became the first player in franchise history to play in 400 consecutive regular-season games. He also helped the Cavaliers go 12-1 in route to their third consecutive Finals appearance where they lost to the Warriors in 5 games. Thompson also represented his country and Canada Basketball at the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship in 2008, where Canada won the bronze medal placing behind Argentina and the United States.