Tristan Thompson Receives The King's Seal of Approval, Thinks He Should Be Cavaliers for Life

LeBron James speaks highly about impending free agent Tristan Thompson.

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Complex Original

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With free agency looming, Tristan Thompson is picking a great time to put up some great numbers. In his four-year career, Thompson is averaging 10.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. However, in this year's playoff run, the 24-year-old power forward has seen a dip in his points per game average (8.9), which should be expected when he is, at best, the fourth offensive option on team, behind LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and J.R. Smith.

But, where the Texas product is making waves is on the glass, averaging 9.8 per game in the 2015 NBA Playoffs, as well as putting up five double-doubles. Then, there are the intangibles. From hustling for loose balls to banging in the paint for boards, Thompson is doing all the little things that don't appear in the box score. And LeBron has noticed. 

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LeBron takes a stance on Tristan Thompson's impending free agency: "Tristan's a guy who should probably be a Cavalier his entire career"

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) May 25, 2015

As Fear the Sword points out, James and Thompson have the same agent in Rich Paul. Plus, it's fair to say that what LeBron wants, LeBron gets. Even though Tristan reportedly turned down a lucrative four-year, $52 million extension, the Cavaliers are going to have to do a little better than that to not only keep Thompson around, but keep 'Bron 'Bron happy. 

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[via Fear the Sword]

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