Tristan Thompson - Relentless Rebounder (Finals)

Tristan Thompson showed his tenacity these Finals. His relentless rebounding gave Cleveland a fighting chance against the world class Warriors. Without two of their 3 all-stars, the Cavaliers challenged a team that had gone 79-18 to that point, and Thompson’s tremendous toughness was at the heart of it all. Time after time, it seemed that the Texas Longhorn muscled his way to the ball no matter who was in his way. Whether it was through his quickness in swimming around the man trying to box him, or just straight up discarding defenders, he generated a TON of extra possessions.

Double T’s performance put him in the top 10 all-time for offensive rebounds during a Finals series, placing him in the company of Moses Malone, Rodman, the Big E, Shaq, Duncan & Ewing. That’s not bad for a guy who was hearing rumblings of being a bust just a few seasons ago.

In this video, you’ll find each and every offensive rebound registered by the endlessly exhaustive Thompson in order, with the exception of one play (which I’m sure you’ll understand when you get to it). I found that his 32 offensive boards didn’t do his effort justice, so I also tried to include every instance where he kept an offensive possession alive through sheer effort and force of will, or even times when he forced the foul as they were trying to keep him off the glass.

The Canadian’s constant crashing the glass created chaos for Kerr and company, and caused them to force the issue with their small-ball lineup. Thompson terrorized the Dubs further, but in the end, the Cavs just couldn’t keep pace. Sure, they didn’t win, but please take the time to appreciate his absolute abuse of the Golden State bigs in banging the boards, and his resolve to rebound, no matter the odds.