As the NBA’s June 22 draft nears, two of Houston’s potential targets with the No. 4 overall pick in the first round— Amen and Ausar Thompson — will reportedly be in town next week.
“Should they hold onto their lottery pick, names like Amen and Ausar Thompson and Cam Whitmore have been most frequently linked to the team, with the Thompson twins scheduled to visit next week,” reports Kelly Iko, who covers the Rockets for The Athletic.
Both Thompson twins are 6-foot-7 athletic phenoms who most recently played in the newly created Overtime Elite league. Ausar is largely viewed as a wing, while Amen has more point-guard skills.
Generally speaking, Amen Thompson is most frequently projected to the Rockets in the most recent wave of mock drafts. However, the margin is close enough that both could be in play.
Amen and Ausar Thompson, potential top-10 picks in this month’s draft, are slated to visit the Houston Rockets next week, sources tell @TheAthletic. https://t.co/rlnTriWyCc
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) June 9, 2023
Other potential options for the Rockets at No. 4 overall could include Alabama’s Brandon Miller, Scoot Henderson of the G League Ignite and Villanova’s Cam Whitmore. Because many draft projections have Miller and Henderson among the top-three selections, it isn’t clear if either will work out for Houston in the pre-draft process.
That said, not working out wouldn’t preclude them from being the pick. In 2022, Auburn’s Jabari Smith Jr. only worked out for Orlando and Oklahoma City because most projections had him going with one of the draft’s top-two picks. However, he slid to No. 3, and the Rockets were happy to take him there based on Smith’s perceived value at that slot and his college game tape.
