At San Diego State, Malcolm Thomas established himself as a defensive presence and became the school’s second leading all-time shot blocker. While he earned numerous honors including the 2011 All-MWC defensive team, Thomas was not selected in the NBA Draft.
Since going undrafted in 2011, Thomas has made numerous stops around the NBA and overseas. Heading into a new season with the Los Angeles D-Fenders, Thomas wants to show that he can do more than rebounding and defending:
“I’m more than just a rebounder and defensive player — which is not a bad thing — but I feel like I can do a lot more and need to show a lot more. I feel like I will this year.”
In order to get a call-up to the NBA, Thomas worked on his shooting and conditioning during the off-season and is ready to see what the future holds for him:
“Did a lot of weight training. A lot of shooting, conditioning and just ready to go now. Ready to see what happens.”
With Thomas determined to make the jump to the NBA and stay there, he has impressed the coaching staff during training camp. Head coach Robert MacKinnon mentioned how competitive practices have been and how Thomas has stood out.
MacKinnon also praised Thomas as one of the better frontcourt players in the D-League and his career numbers certainly prove it. In 27 games, Thomas has averaged 13.3 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game. His quest to make it to the NBA begins on November 23 against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
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