Pine Crest’s Thompson twins skip senior year of high school, turn pro with Overtime Elite
As juniors, Amen and Ausar Thompson helped Fort Lauderdale Pine Crest win one of the most memorable state championships in recent history. Now they’re turning pro.
The twin guards are signing with Overtime Elite, the league announced Tuesday, and forgoing their final years of high school and any sort of college career to begin playing professionally.
They’re both signing two-year deals with the league, The Athletic reported. Overtime Elite (OTE) plays all players a guaranteed six-figure salary with a league minimum of $100,000, while letting them continue their high school education.
“The Thompson brothers are pure energy on both ends of the floor and bring a style of play that will have the entire basketball world come to know the names Amen and Ausar soon enough,” OTE executive vice president Brandon Williams said in a statement. “These dynamic players are just scratching the surface of their talent, and with their work effort and desire, the sky’s the limit.”
Originally from California, the Thompsons moved to South Florida before their eighth-grade year and enrolled at Pine Crest because they wanted somewhere they could play varsity basketball in middle school. After falling short of the final four for three straight years, the Thompsons guided the Panthers to their fourth state title this year with a double-overtime win in Lakeland.
Amen Thompson scored 43 points in the title game against Alachua Santa Fe, including eight in a row in the last 45 seconds of overtime to keep Pine Crest’s seasons alive after his brother fouled out.
Amen Thompson is the No. 31 overall prospect in the 247Sports.com composite rankings for the Class of 2022 and Ausar Thompson is No. 30. Both were first-team all-Broward County selections by the Miami Herald after they combined for 45.1 points, 15.6 rebounds, 7.8 assists, 5.7 steals and 2.6 rebounds per game last season.
“Amen and Ausar are the types of players that every coach wants, not only in terms of their ability on the court, but because of their commitment to get better,” OTE director of player development Kevin Ollie said. “The Thompsons understand what it takes to reach their potential as whole people, and we’re going to provide them the tools they need to fall in love with the process of being a pro everyday for a lifetime.”
They’re part of the first batch of players signing with the league and all four have South Florida ties. Ryan Bewley and Matt Bewley, twin forwards for Orlando West Oaks Academy, also signed with the league last week. Both top-20 recruits in the Class of 2023, the Bewleys played their freshman season at Fort Lauderdale Northeast before transferring to West Oaks Academy as sophomores.
As professionals, the Thompsons and Bewleys are now ineligible to continue playing high school basketball and ineligible to play college basketball. The Thompsons are now on a path to 2023 NBA Draft, while the Bewleys have their eyes on the 2024 NBA Draft.
The league, which is run by sports network Overtime, is based out of Atlanta and has investments from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, rapper Drake, Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young and about two dozen other NBA players. Overtime plans to launch the league in September.
This story was originally published May 25, 2021 at 1:03 PM.
