Amen Thompson likely sidelined by left ankle sprain for rest of Rockets’ summer league

As first impressions go, rookie point guard Amen Thompson made a strong one for the Houston Rockets in Friday’s opening victory of the NBA’s 2023 summer league in Las Vegas.

The No. 4 overall pick from the recently completed draft held his own in a battle with the No. 3 pick, Scoot Henderson. Ultimately, Houston’s new floor general stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 blocks, and 3 steals, shooting 6-of-13 from the field (46.2%) while making his only 3-point attempt in 28 minutes.

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As it turns out, that positive initial impression — which also resulted in a win, thanks to Jabari Smith Jr.’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer — may be the only one Thompson gets to make at summer league.

In an awkward fall involving multiple players, Thompson sprained his left ankle in the game’s final minute. Per Kelly Iko and Shams Charania of The Athletic, Thompson will undergo an MRI Saturday and is “very likely” to missing the remaining four summer games.

Amen Thompson’s left ankle was forced into inversion. Classic MOI for a lateral ankle sprain. https://t.co/dOKISK6oRH

— Jeff Stotts (@InStreetClothes) July 8, 2023

Thompson limped to the locker room without assistance and was not using crutches postgame, so early indications are that it wasn’t a particularly severe sprain. And with training camps for the 2023-24 season not opening until late September, Thompson now has more than two months to allow it to heal before needing to truly ramp up.

So, in the grand scheme, the setback shouldn’t materially impact Thompson’s rookie campaign with the Rockets. It will, however, make fans wait just a bit longer to see him on the court again.

Rockets very likely to keep Amen Thompson out for the remainder of Summer League, sources tell myself and @ShamsCharania. The No. 4 pick is scheduled for an MRI on his left ankle tomorrow morning.

— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) July 8, 2023