Darius Jamar Thompson (born May 4, 1995) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for Anadolu Efes of the Turkish

Basketbol Süper Ligi The Basketball Super League ( tr, Basketbol Süper Ligi; BSL), also known as the Türkiye Sigorta Basketbol Süper Ligi for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's professional basketball division of the Turkish basketball league system. It repla ...

(BSL) and the EuroLeague. Standing at , he plays at the point guard position.

Early life

Thompson was born in

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropo ...

, and is the son of Lonnie Thompson, who played basketball for Middle Tennessee State, and Felicia Thompson. Playing for Blackman High School, Thompson was an 2013

McDonald's All-American Game The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the concl ...

nominee and was ranked the no. 4 best combo guard in the country by ''247Sports.com''. In his senior year with Blackman, he averaged 16.4 points and 6.4 assists.

College career

Professional career

ZZ Leiden

In August 2017, Thompson signed a one-year contract with

ZZ Leiden ZZ Leiden Basketball, also known as Zorg en Zekerheid Leiden, is a basketball club based in Leiden, Netherlands. The club plays in the BNXT League, the domestic first tier league. Their home games are played at Vijf Meihal, which has 2,000 seats. ...

of the

Dutch Basketball League The Dutch Basketball League (DBL), formerly the Eredivisie, was the highest professional basketball league in the Netherlands, run by the Federatie Eredivisie Basketball (FEB). Since 2021, the league has been replaced by the Belgian-Dutch BNXT L ...

(DBL) and

FIBA Europe Cup The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA's European-wide second level. Clubs mainly qualify for the competition based on their performance in natio ...

. On October 27, 2017, Thompson scored 32 points in a 73–78 win over

Den Helder Suns The Den Helder Suns are a professional basketball club based in Den Helder, Netherlands. The club was founded in 2016 and currently plays in the BNXT League. The team has played at the highest domestic level since years. The Suns play their home ...

. On November 7, Thompson led Leiden to a win over Sakarya BB in the

by scoring 36 points. On March 31, Thompson won the

NBB Cup The Basketball Cup, formerly the NBB Cup ( nl, NBB-Beker), is an annual cup competition for Dutch basketball teams organised by the Basketball Nederland. Every team in the Netherlands can participate by signing up for the preliminary rounds. Prof ...

with Leiden, after scoring 25 points in the final. On April 24, 2019, Thompson won the DBL Most Valuable Player award.

Brindisi

On July 23, 2019, Thompson signed a one-year contract with an option for a second season with Happy Casa Brindisi of the Italian

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club basketball league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball Federation (FIP). It is the highest-tie ...

(LBA) and

Basketball Champions League The Basketball Champions League (BCL) is an annual professional basketball competition for European clubs, organised by FIBA. It is the top-level competition organised by FIBA Europe, therefore the champion participates in the FIBA Interconti ...

(BCL).

Lokomotiv Kuban

On July 1, 2021, Thompson left Brindisi after two years and signed in the

VTB United League VTB United League (russian: Единая Лига ВТБ) is an international professional men's club basketball league that was founded in 2008. It is made up of mostly Russian clubs, along with one each from Belarus and Kazakhstan. Since 2013, i ...

for the Russian team Lokomotiv Kuban. He left the team after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.However he said that participation in this team was pleasant.

Baskonia

On August 12, 2022, Thompson signed a two-year (1+1) contract with

Baskonia Club Deportivo Saski-Baskonia, S.A.D., commonly known as Saski Baskonia (), also known as Cazoo Baskonia for sponsorship reasons, is a professional basketball team that is based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain. The team plays in the Liga ACB and the ...

of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. Thompson had a breakout season in 2022-23 with Baskonia. He led the EuroLeague in assists per game (averaging 6.7 per game) and was named to the All-EuroLeague Second Team. Thompson was also voted the Best Newcomer by the EuroLeague Players' Association (ELPA). On July 7, 2023, Thompson parted ways with the Spanish club.

Anadolu Efes

On July 7, 2023, Thompson signed a three-year (2+1) contract with Turkish powerhouse Anadolu Efes, where he replaced star point guard Vasilije Micić who left the club for the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

National team career

Thompson has been recruited by the Italy national team, as he is eligible for an Italian passport because of his Italian wife.

Honors

;ZZ Leiden *

: 2018–19 * DBL Most Valuable Player: 2018–19 *

All-DBL Team The Dutch Basketball League (DBL) All-Star Team, also known as All-DBL Team, is a team constituted by the main players in a season of the Dutch Basketball League, the highest professional basketball league in the Netherlands. This team is based o ...

: 2018–19 *

DBL scoring leader In basketball, points are the sum of the score accumulated through free throws or field goals. The Dutch Basketball League The Dutch Basketball League (DBL), formerly the Eredivisie, was the highest professional basketball league in the Netherla ...

: 2018–19 *

DBL Statistical Player of the Year The Dutch Basketball League Statistical Player of the Year is an award given to the player who has the best statistical season in the Dutch highest professional basketball league. The player with the highest Player efficiency rating receives the ...

: 2018–19

References

External links

Virginia Cavaliers bioTennessee Volunteers bioWestern Kentucky Hilltoppers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Darius 1995 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in the Netherlands American expatriate basketball people in Russia American expatriate basketball people in Spain American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Anadolu Efes S.K. players Basketball players from Tennessee B.S. Leiden players Dutch Basketball League players Lega Basket Serie A players Liga ACB players New Basket Brindisi players PBC Lokomotiv-Kuban players Point guards Saski Baskonia players Sportspeople from Murfreesboro, Tennessee Tennessee Volunteers basketball players Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball players Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball players ZZ Leiden players