Widely considered two of the top basketball players in the class of 2022, former Pine Crest student-athletes Amen and Ausar Thompson are now competing at the professional level. With over 2,200 total career high school points, the two have been nothing short of unstoppable. To top their high school basketball careers off, they even ended the 2021 season with a state championship. After leaving Pine Crest upon the conclusion of their junior years to continue their basketball careers with Overtime Elite, a professional basketball league based out of Atlanta Georgia, they continue to be dominant at the highest level.

Overtime Elite, commonly referred to as “OTE”, announced in September that they had raised over $80 million in investments from the likes of Jeff Bezos, over 25 NBA players, and rappers such as Drake to fund their professional basketball league. Each player involved, including the Thompson brothers, is guaranteed a minimum salary of $100,000 per season and will retain the right to make direct sponsorships.

When asked about the twins, Kevin Ollie, head coach for OTE, says “Amen and Ausar are the types of players that every coach wants, not only in terms of their ability on the court but because of their commitment to get better”.

In predictions such as a ‘mock draft’ where sports analysts attempt to determine where the next generation of potential draft picks will eventually end up, Ausar Thompson was predicted at #10, and Amen Thompson at #8. This means that experts believe that the twins are some of the top 10 players in the world for the 2022 draft class.

To achieve something as prestigious as being involved in professional athletics is absolutely incredible, and Pine Crest is more than excited to follow their inevitably lengthy careers with great interest. Talent like that of the Thompson Brothers coming out of Pine Crest allows for new Pine Crest students to have role models to look up to that show what is truly possible with hard work. The Paw Print wishes the Thompson brothers the best of luck in their future endeavors and in their undoubtedly great future in the sport of basketball.