I'm trying to get out to summer basketball practice once a week to do interviews, and at the end of last week I talked to Rhode Island grad transfer Christion Thompson, a Gonzalez native whom Ron Hunterr thinks is much better than his stats indicated. He's a defense-first versatile 6-4 guard capable of averaging considerably more than the 5.7 points he put up as a part-time starter last year after spending his freshman and sophomore seasons as a reserve. He also is a thoughtful guy who has dealt with a lot in his life.
Here is my full interview with him:
Why Tulane?
“When I came on my visit, coach Hunter spoke about how he needed seniors and old guys to come in and take over the program and run the program and fit all the younger guys into his system. I thought his system was a great system for myself and all the pieces that he was bringing together, I just think we are going to be a good team not only in this conference but individual in basketball.”
Tulane has done a lot of losing in the past. Do you feel like you can win next year?
“I’m really excited. We have a lot to look forward to. A lot of teams are going to look down on us. A lot of coaches are going to look down on us. We are going to be counted out early throughout the season, but we are going to get better and better and we are going to work at it, we are going to grind it. I promise you no game will be easy. This is a new era of Tulane basketball, and like coach Hunter said, we’ve got something to prove.”
Coach Ron Hunter joked that he was going to apply to the NCAA to get you another four years of eligibility because you can guard almost every position on the floor.
“That’s definitely one of my strengths. I take it personally every time I get between the lines to just never let anybody score on me. I was taught that at a young age. My (step) father always said don’t let anybody score on you.”
How would you describe your game?
“Smart. I’m a smart player. I can make shots, but I really thrive on defense and once that defense gets going, it gives me that confidence to get my offense going. I feel that I can do pretty much anything I’m asked to do on the court.”
Coach Hunter describes you as a glue guy. Do you agree?
“Yeah. That’s all about your mindset and what you work for and how hard you go. I give 110 percent every time. I dive on the floor. I get every rebound I need. I guard any position I need to guard. I do whatever I need to do to win.”
You missed a year at Rhode Island (2017-18). What was the issue?
"I was injured. I had surgery. I tore a patellar tendon one year, so I sat out my junior year, which God-willing gave me this year to come here. My career at Rhode Island was really good. My first few years with coach (Dan) Hurley, a great coach. Even coach (David) Cox (Hurley’s associate head coach, who succeeded him in 2018-19 when he left for UConn) was a great coach, too. My role last year kind of fell off. I was the glue guy and nothing else. That’s why I wanted to go somewhere I could do everything I would like to do and I am able to do with my game. I work too hard to be stuffed in a container."
Was the transition to Cox from Hurley difficult?
“It was a little difficult. He was such a great guy and such a great coach, I’ll never speak down on him or his program or what he’s doing over there. It’s just certain pieces come in and certain pieces have to leave. It’s all a part of the game. I know it’s business. I wish them the best this year coming up.”
Was there a specific time when you knew you would be playing somewhere else for your final year?
“There was definitely a time, but I never wanted to put in my head that I’m ready to leave because I was for those guys and I was for that team. I was still all in until the last whistle blew (in an Atlantic 10 tournament semifinal loss), and once that happened, I focused on school, really bearing down making sure I graduated having a high GPA. That way I’d be able to get into master’s programs and be able to go pretty much anywhere I wanted. When Tulane called, it was God.”
What were the other schools recruiting you when you chose Rhode Island?
“When I went to Rhode Island, I had a bunch of schools around here. I had all the little schools around here. I had Mississippi State. I had Texas A&M, Creighton.”
Did Tulane recruit you at all?
“Tulane recruited me a little bit but I didn’t show any interest, so they kind of backed off. And then some of those coaches from that staff (under Ed Conroy) broke up and dispersed.”
What’s it like being back in Louisiana?
“It’s a great feeling. It gives me an extra drive and gives me extra confidence that I needed coming from somewhere where I was so stuck into you can do this, do this, do this. I needed somewhere I could go and give me my confidence, and just being home and having my family and friends all around and with this group of guys that really looks up to me already, this is a good situation for me.”
You are one of three grad transfers. How much do you feel you guys add in terms of experience and knowing what it takes?
“We bring a lot. We’ve got K.J., who brings a tremendous game. He can do pretty much anything. He can guard a lot of positions also, and he played at one of the biggest schools in the nation (Kansas). He’ll never be scared to play against any opponent. And we’ve got Nic, who can just flat-out shoot the ball from anywhere. Without hesitation he can knock down any shot.”
This team played with no point guard last year. Now you have Ray Ona Embo and Jordan Walker. What are they adding?
“Ray is a hard guy. He’s really working on his shot right now and getting in shape. I know what it is like to come off an injury. He’ll be such a great player. With Jordan, he wants to be great. His drive and his will to be great is something you don’t really come across a lot. He loves to be in the gym. Any time me, K.J. or Nic are in the gym, he’s always right there no matter what time it is or how long we stay. He always wants to win and he actually listens. When you try to teach him something, he’ll take it in.”
How did you hurt your patellar tendon?
“It was at a practice towards the end of my sophomore season. I went up to dunk it and I came down wrong. I knew something was wrong, but I played through it. I ended up getting a PRP (platelet rich plasma) shot. It didn’t really work. I sat out for a little longer and ended up having the surgery about the end of the summer. I could have come back my junior year probably halfway through, but it was best for me to redshirt.”
Were you 100 percent last year?
“Right. I wasn’t 100 percent at the beginning of the year, but by the time we got to conference (play) I was.”
How tough is to overcome something like that?
“It was really tough. With me, I’ve overcome everything that’s been thrown at me in life. That being thrown at me, I knew there was a reason. I knew God wanted to test me. It was such a blessing in disguise, like my mom says every day. It was able to come out of the situation, graduate, get my master’s degree and have an extra year to come home and play in front of my family.”
What else have you overcome in life?
“I lost my dad when I was 4 years old. Me and my mom and my brothers, I have two older brothers, growing up. My mom worked hard, got remarried and I have a stepdad who also worked hard and was able to give us everything that we really wanted. It wasn’t always perfect. It wasn’t always the best, but we made do, and that’s what she always taught us and what he always taught us, to make do with what you have and keep God first.”
Do your older brothers play basketball, too?
"Yes. I have an older brother named Jessie. He played basketball. My little brother actually came to Tulane. He’s a really smart guy. My oldest brother fought through and beat cancer. He had cancer when we were younger. He had non-Hodkins lymphoma and he beat that, so that was something we went through when we were younger, just another test God through at us, but we overcame it. We’re a tight family. We do everything together. We talk every day. We do everything together."
How happy was your mother about your coming back to Louisiana?
“She came to a lot of games in Rhode Island. She spent so much money traveling back and forth, but it was worth it. She worked so hard and she always says that was one of her gifts to herself being able to go see me play and now she can come down the street and watch me play. She’ll be at every game. A lot of my family, my brother will be at a lot of games and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Did you visit anywhere but Tulane?
“Initially I was going to visit other schools. I got the call that Tulane wanted me and as soon as I got the call, I just shut it down. I knew I was going to come here. I was talking to coach (Kevin) Johnson just about every other day once I put my name in the portal, and I just made the decision to come to Tulane.”
Here is my full interview with him:
Why Tulane?
“When I came on my visit, coach Hunter spoke about how he needed seniors and old guys to come in and take over the program and run the program and fit all the younger guys into his system. I thought his system was a great system for myself and all the pieces that he was bringing together, I just think we are going to be a good team not only in this conference but individual in basketball.”
Tulane has done a lot of losing in the past. Do you feel like you can win next year?
“I’m really excited. We have a lot to look forward to. A lot of teams are going to look down on us. A lot of coaches are going to look down on us. We are going to be counted out early throughout the season, but we are going to get better and better and we are going to work at it, we are going to grind it. I promise you no game will be easy. This is a new era of Tulane basketball, and like coach Hunter said, we’ve got something to prove.”
Coach Ron Hunter joked that he was going to apply to the NCAA to get you another four years of eligibility because you can guard almost every position on the floor.
“That’s definitely one of my strengths. I take it personally every time I get between the lines to just never let anybody score on me. I was taught that at a young age. My (step) father always said don’t let anybody score on you.”
How would you describe your game?
“Smart. I’m a smart player. I can make shots, but I really thrive on defense and once that defense gets going, it gives me that confidence to get my offense going. I feel that I can do pretty much anything I’m asked to do on the court.”
Coach Hunter describes you as a glue guy. Do you agree?
“Yeah. That’s all about your mindset and what you work for and how hard you go. I give 110 percent every time. I dive on the floor. I get every rebound I need. I guard any position I need to guard. I do whatever I need to do to win.”
You missed a year at Rhode Island (2017-18). What was the issue?
"I was injured. I had surgery. I tore a patellar tendon one year, so I sat out my junior year, which God-willing gave me this year to come here. My career at Rhode Island was really good. My first few years with coach (Dan) Hurley, a great coach. Even coach (David) Cox (Hurley’s associate head coach, who succeeded him in 2018-19 when he left for UConn) was a great coach, too. My role last year kind of fell off. I was the glue guy and nothing else. That’s why I wanted to go somewhere I could do everything I would like to do and I am able to do with my game. I work too hard to be stuffed in a container."
Was the transition to Cox from Hurley difficult?
“It was a little difficult. He was such a great guy and such a great coach, I’ll never speak down on him or his program or what he’s doing over there. It’s just certain pieces come in and certain pieces have to leave. It’s all a part of the game. I know it’s business. I wish them the best this year coming up.”
Was there a specific time when you knew you would be playing somewhere else for your final year?
“There was definitely a time, but I never wanted to put in my head that I’m ready to leave because I was for those guys and I was for that team. I was still all in until the last whistle blew (in an Atlantic 10 tournament semifinal loss), and once that happened, I focused on school, really bearing down making sure I graduated having a high GPA. That way I’d be able to get into master’s programs and be able to go pretty much anywhere I wanted. When Tulane called, it was God.”
What were the other schools recruiting you when you chose Rhode Island?
“When I went to Rhode Island, I had a bunch of schools around here. I had all the little schools around here. I had Mississippi State. I had Texas A&M, Creighton.”
Did Tulane recruit you at all?
“Tulane recruited me a little bit but I didn’t show any interest, so they kind of backed off. And then some of those coaches from that staff (under Ed Conroy) broke up and dispersed.”
What’s it like being back in Louisiana?
“It’s a great feeling. It gives me an extra drive and gives me extra confidence that I needed coming from somewhere where I was so stuck into you can do this, do this, do this. I needed somewhere I could go and give me my confidence, and just being home and having my family and friends all around and with this group of guys that really looks up to me already, this is a good situation for me.”
You are one of three grad transfers. How much do you feel you guys add in terms of experience and knowing what it takes?
“We bring a lot. We’ve got K.J., who brings a tremendous game. He can do pretty much anything. He can guard a lot of positions also, and he played at one of the biggest schools in the nation (Kansas). He’ll never be scared to play against any opponent. And we’ve got Nic, who can just flat-out shoot the ball from anywhere. Without hesitation he can knock down any shot.”
This team played with no point guard last year. Now you have Ray Ona Embo and Jordan Walker. What are they adding?
“Ray is a hard guy. He’s really working on his shot right now and getting in shape. I know what it is like to come off an injury. He’ll be such a great player. With Jordan, he wants to be great. His drive and his will to be great is something you don’t really come across a lot. He loves to be in the gym. Any time me, K.J. or Nic are in the gym, he’s always right there no matter what time it is or how long we stay. He always wants to win and he actually listens. When you try to teach him something, he’ll take it in.”
How did you hurt your patellar tendon?
“It was at a practice towards the end of my sophomore season. I went up to dunk it and I came down wrong. I knew something was wrong, but I played through it. I ended up getting a PRP (platelet rich plasma) shot. It didn’t really work. I sat out for a little longer and ended up having the surgery about the end of the summer. I could have come back my junior year probably halfway through, but it was best for me to redshirt.”
Were you 100 percent last year?
“Right. I wasn’t 100 percent at the beginning of the year, but by the time we got to conference (play) I was.”
How tough is to overcome something like that?
“It was really tough. With me, I’ve overcome everything that’s been thrown at me in life. That being thrown at me, I knew there was a reason. I knew God wanted to test me. It was such a blessing in disguise, like my mom says every day. It was able to come out of the situation, graduate, get my master’s degree and have an extra year to come home and play in front of my family.”
What else have you overcome in life?
“I lost my dad when I was 4 years old. Me and my mom and my brothers, I have two older brothers, growing up. My mom worked hard, got remarried and I have a stepdad who also worked hard and was able to give us everything that we really wanted. It wasn’t always perfect. It wasn’t always the best, but we made do, and that’s what she always taught us and what he always taught us, to make do with what you have and keep God first.”
Do your older brothers play basketball, too?
"Yes. I have an older brother named Jessie. He played basketball. My little brother actually came to Tulane. He’s a really smart guy. My oldest brother fought through and beat cancer. He had cancer when we were younger. He had non-Hodkins lymphoma and he beat that, so that was something we went through when we were younger, just another test God through at us, but we overcame it. We’re a tight family. We do everything together. We talk every day. We do everything together."
How happy was your mother about your coming back to Louisiana?
“She came to a lot of games in Rhode Island. She spent so much money traveling back and forth, but it was worth it. She worked so hard and she always says that was one of her gifts to herself being able to go see me play and now she can come down the street and watch me play. She’ll be at every game. A lot of my family, my brother will be at a lot of games and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Did you visit anywhere but Tulane?
“Initially I was going to visit other schools. I got the call that Tulane wanted me and as soon as I got the call, I just shut it down. I knew I was going to come here. I was talking to coach (Kevin) Johnson just about every other day once I put my name in the portal, and I just made the decision to come to Tulane.”
