The Whiteboard: Houston has its next All-Star in the building already

Amen Thompson is special.

Before the season, in this very same column, I wrote about Amen Thompson's potential breakout for the Houston Rockets. Most elite prospects take a leap in their second season. It's something of a tradition.

Thompson was somewhat buried in a deep draft class, but he's one of the best fourth-overall picks in recent memory. The list of superior prospects we've seen over the last few years is short. Thompson is a 100th percentile athlete. One could credibly argue that he's the best athlete in the NBA, point blank.

He hails from a unique background, opting out of college or a professional pipeline overseas in favor of playing in Atlanta's Overtime Elite league. That effectively meant Thompson was beating up on high school competition, and thus skeptics were easy to come by. The fact that he spent his entire OTE career next to Ausar Thompson, his identical twin, who featured eerily similar strengths and shortcomings, probably didn't help Thompson "stand out" either.

All of that was noise, though. Thompson possesses an exceptionally high feel for the game. For a 6-foot-7 nuclear athlete like Thompson, that is a ticket to success. His ball-handling chops, passing creativity, and defensive effort were cherries on top of a loaded sundae.

Now, Houston is reaping the rewards of a star turn that was always coming.

Amen Thompson and the Houston Rockets are taking off

Thompson has spent the majority of this season in a super-sixth man role for Houston, taking on a variety of responsibilities as a Swiss Army Knife off the bench. Recently, however, an injury to Jabari Smith Jr. has forced Thompson into the starting lineup. It was a promotion out of necessity, but don't expect Thompson to relinquish his starting spot ever again. Not if the Rockets know what's best.

Over his last four games, all starts, Thompson is averaging 18.0 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 4.0 assists on .563/.167/.708 splits in 39.6 minutes. There's a reason Thompson is on the court so much. Houston is riding the 21-year-old until the wheels fall off because he does so much good. Thompson, like few others in the NBA, can truly touch every aspect of a game. Look past the rickety 3-point stroke, and you'll find one of the most complete, up-and-coming talents in basketball.

Thompson has put his name in the running for DPOY despite spending most of his season to date in a bench role. He's averaging 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks in 29.1 minutes, but Thompson's impact goes beyond the surface-level numbers. He's incredibly sharp at every level, whether he's mirroring ball-handlers at the point of attack, supplying help-side rim protection, or switching screens along the perimeter. He does everything with intention, which is incredibly valuable when you're able to glide through time and space like the human manifestation of your mascot. Thompson is a true rocket, shot out of a pressurized canon and hardly ever off-target. It helps that he can end so many possessions on the glass. On top of his many virtues, Thompson is among the NBA's very best rebounding wings.

The offensive impact is better than most give him credit for, too. Thompson still can't hit many 3s, but his first step is truly potent. Once Thompson gains the advantage going downhill, he's nearly impossible to stop. He can finish through, around, or over a contest. He's too fleet of foot and elusive for slow-footed rim protectors, too strong for undersized guards. Most wings can't hang speed-wise. Thompson just moves differently than everyone else. He's automatic at the rim, and he gets there almost at will.

Before his NBA leap, Thompson was billed as a point guard. He was the primary ball-handler for his OTE teams, even taking precedent over his uber-talented brother in that department. Houston lets Thompson freestyle a little bit, but he hasn't been handed the reins yet. It's only a matter of time until Thompson's usage spikes and his numbers spike, too.

What makes him so special, however, is that Thompson is a trained point guard, a "natural" point guard, who looks completely comfortable in the power forward role. Beyond the rebounding and shot-blocking, Thompson does all the little things offensively. He's an attentive off-ball cutter and mover. He makes himself available for lobs. He keeps his defender occupied, even without a jumper. Thompson will set screens, fire dimes out of the short roll, and pose a dynamic threat in the mold of a small-ball big man. His ability to be so effortlessly chameleonic — to alter his approach to fit the personnel around him — is uncommon. Thompson is whatever the Rockets need him to be.

Thompson is the next All-Star on this Rockets roster. There has been a lot of talk about the need to trade for an All-Star guard, such as De'Aaron Fox or Devin Booker. That may be what vaults Houston to the next level of contention, but acting like the Rockets don't have star-power coming down the pipeline is willful ignorance. Thompson has the sauce. Reed Sheppard hasn't even gotten a chance to play yet, but he's the perfect backcourt complement on paper.

Perhaps, more than anything else, Houston just needs to embrace its next generation more fully.

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NBA news roundup:

• Phoenix has sent Josh Okogie and three second-round picks to Charlotte in exchange for Nick Richards and a second-round pick. It's a strong trade for the Suns, who trim a ludicrous tax bill and tangibly improve their rotation in one fell swoop. Phoenix's center rotation is the NBA's most dire. Jusuf Nurkic is halfway out the door. Mason Plumlee has lost a step or several. Oso Ighodaro has looked promising as a rookie, but Richards immediately becomes Phoenix's starting five and primary defensive anchor.

• Jimmy Butler plans to report back to Miami on Thursday after his seven-game suspension. The six-time All-Star recently reiterated his trade request directly to Pat Riley and vowed never to sign a new contract with the Heat. Things could get awkward ...

• The Rockets have "let it be known" that they are Devin Booker fans, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst. Phoenix remains committed to its current core for now, but sooner or later, the Suns will need to reckon with their obvious stagnation and lack of avenues to improve. As luck would have it, Houston owns Phoenix's next few drafts and can provide a path to rebuilding.

Cade Cunningham is finally delivering on the No. 1 pick hype

Cade Cunningham was always the light at the end of the tunnel in Detroit.

Through injury-plagued seasons, which saw Cunningham stifled by the rampant incompetence of his front office and coaches, the former No. 1 pick still gave fans hope to cling to. Now he's rewarding their patience with a proper breakthrough campaign.

Cunningham should start in the All-Star game next month. The Pistons are 21-19 under new head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, who is running an actual offense and leaning into Cunningham's innate star qualities.

It helps to put viable shooters around Cunningham. Tobias Harris, Malik Beasley, and Tim Hardaway Jr. aren't great NBA players by any stretch, but giving your 6-foot-7 heliocentric ball-handler room to operate is a swell idea. Cunningham has never been an elite athlete, but his size, strength, and ball-handling creativity is a rare intersection. He's great at changing speeds and leveraging his broad shoulders to carve out space, whether it's to step back into a pull-up jumper or to drive through to the rim.

The 23-year-old is averaging 24.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 9.4 assists on .460/.382/.798 splits for Detroit. He is one of the most prolific passers in the NBA, third behind only Trae Young and Nikola Jokic in assists per game. Cunningham has never lacked the vision or the willingness to playmake at this level. It's all about empowerment. Detroit is giving Cunningham the freedom to probe defensive pressure points and truly command the offense.

There aren't too many more well-rounded offensive weapons in the East right now, and Cunningham is a better than average defender, to boot. This will be the first of many All-Star appearances for the former No. 1 pick, who has eliminated any and all opposition to his worthiness of that mantle.