Sam Thomas seems to lull her opponents into thinking they can beat her one-on-one.
They don’t. They can’t.
Her latest victim was No. 2 Oregon’s Satou Sabally. Arizona’s junior guard held Sabally, thought to be a Top 5 pick in this year’s WNBA draft — to nine points and three rebounds in the Ducks’ Pac-12 Tournament semifinal win over the UA. Sabally averaged 16.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.
Few in the Pac-12 can flat-out defend like Thomas can; it’s why she was named to the conference’s all-defensive team.
Thomas struggles to stop just one player — Bailey Thomas, her sister.
Bailey Thomas
“I’m the oldest,” said Bailey, a junior guard at UNLV. “I’m the one who taught her how to play defense. She was looking at me.”
Bailey Thomas was named the Mountain West Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year this month. Sam Thomas received the second-most votes for the Pac-12’s Defensive Player of the Year, losing narrowly to teammate Aari McDonald.
Sam Thomas demurred when asked who the best defender in her family was.
“I can’t really speak on that because (Bailey) got defensive player of the year. I guess her defense is pretty good — but I think we’re pretty evenly matched,” she replied. “She’s more of a deep-down defender, gets steals. I’m more of a (shot) blocker. We have different defensive styles, but I think I’m pretty even.”
Bailey added: “I think she got the blocks from herself cause she’s a little taller than me, but I think I got her on the lateral quickness.”
That’s about all the trash talk that you’ll find between these two — or even their younger siblings. The Thomases are a basketball family: Jade is a senior at Las Vegas Centennial High School who has signed with UNLV. Shane is a sophomore at Centennial. All four siblings play the same position, guard.
Like a lot of siblings, the Thomases compete. Sam Thomas said time spent in the gym with Bailey developed her game.
“Just competing against her when I was younger and growing up, she’s always been able to defend me,” Thomas said. “It made me mad, like, ‘Why can’t I score against you?’ So, I took pride and was like ‘Well, I’m not gonna let you score on me, either.’ Competing like that really helps.
“I think she plays a really consistent game all the time, which I try and take after her. I think consistency is the most important thing. She also shoots the 3 quite well and her defense, obviously because defense is important.”
Consistency is definitely part of Sam Thomas’ game.
Arizona forward Sam Thomas (14) yells after nailing a long distance three against Stanford in the dying seconds of the fourth quarter of their Pac12 basketball game at McKale Center, February 28, 2020, Tucson, Ariz.
She averaged 9.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game as a junior while shooting a career-high 43.7% from the field. The numbers are in line with what Thomas did as a freshman, when she averaged 10.2 points, 1.2 assists and 7.0 rebounds per game, and her 9.1-point, 1.4-assist, 3.4-rebound showing as a sophomore. Thomas has 136 career blocks, split almost evenly among her three seasons.
Her performance is the result of a relentless motor. Last year, after Arizona won the WNIT title, the Wildcats’ players were given two weeks off. Thomas was back in the gym the next day with her family.
Her work ethic seems to be inherited. Thomas’ father, Derek, is a basketball coach; her mom, Julie, played the game and was a top defender.
Jade Thomas is a student of the game, focusing on Sam’s timing, positioning and her long arms to block shots and get deflections.
“Sam teaches me,” Jade Thomas said. “I’m definitely using my length in my defense. She’s really good at that. To see her actually perform live — not just on TV — it’s really fun to see the small things that the TV doesn’t always capture. On the bench, her energy is always there. Even if she’s not having the best game, she’s always cheering on her teammates and not having a glum face.
“She gives a lot in everything she does — you can see that on the court. I want people to know that she does that in life, she gives her all in everything and I really admire her for that.”
Shane, the youngest and the only boy, says he catches the brunt of some roughhousing from Sam. He credits her for his toughness. That, and something else.
“She’s always smiling on the court; she’s always having a good time,” Shane said. “We play similar. I like to have fun on the court, shoot the ball and play defense.”
Listening in on all that her children were saying courtside before No. 12 Arizona took on Oregon at the Pac-12 Tournament, Julie Thomas beamed. She said all her kids are “great.”
And, Sam, well, “She’s always smiling. She always puts her heart in it. She embraces the community she’s in, and I think they are embracing her. And I’m just so proud of her.”
Rim shots
- UA assistant Jackie Nared was named one of the top young up-and-coming coaches in WBCA’s “Thirty Under 30.” She is the only Pac-12 assistant on the list.
- Fans can vote for the Naismith’s Starting Five and Aari McDonald for shooting guard at hoophallawards.com/women/vote.php. Voting is allowed once a day for all five positions.
- Guard Lucia Alonso finished her UA career with a team-best 40% shooting from beyond the arc.
