By Jon Styf
LocalSportsJournal.com
When Camden Thompson catches the ball on a defensive rebound, he immediately looks downcourt for opportunity.
Passing the ball might not be the first thing people think of from the standout Whitehall junior, but it’s what he’s thinking about when the ball reaches his hands. And the way Thompson has been able to push the ball and jumpstart offensive opportunities for his team is just another reason that Coach Christian Subdon says his 6-foot-5 big man who’s a 6-foot-7 high-jumper can do it all.
Whitehall’s Camden Thompson. Photo/Mia Milner
“I feel like my teammates just trust me,” Thompson said. “I feel like we’ve just got the connection this year so far where if I’m getting the rebound, they’re going on a dead sprint down the court and I just kind of throw it how I catch it.”
Thompson has been a key component of Whitehall’s 11-0 start and No. 3 ranking in Division 2 of the Michigan Power Rankings while averaging 24.1 points and 19.6 rebounds per game.
The rebound stats and his run of 10 double-doubles to start the year are what stand out statistically for a junior who became just the fifth Whitehall player to score 1,000 career points, reaching the mark in just the eighth game of his junior year.
“Some nights, you’ll see him scoring 27 and we’ll win,” Subdon said. “Some nights you’ll see him scoring 18 and we’ll win by the same amount because he’s just making the right plays, drawing those double and triple teams and that’s something he wasn’t doing as well last year.
Thompson (23) stretches out to block a shot against Ludington. Photo/Joe Washington
“He was getting up a shot and, when he gets the double team now, he’s just making the right play. It’s really paying off for us.”
Both Thompson and Subdon attributed the increased basketball IQ to playing nearly 100 games this summer with the Storm and his high school team at camps at Oakland University, the University of Michigan, Grand Valley State and Hope.
At those camps, the Vikings saw competition from the east side of the state that will help them come playoff time.
When it comes to rebounding, Subdon said Thompson is just relentless, moving himself into the right position as the ball leaves a shooter’s hand.
“He’s got an extremely fast second jump,” Subdon said. “If he gets a shot up on the rim, he’s already jumping before everyone else is trying to figure out how to box him out. If he misses a shot, he’s getting his own a high percentage of the time.”
On offense, that timing and the jumping ability that helped Thompson finish a close runner-up in the high jump has provided some entertainment as well, including a putback dunk that a teammate threw to him off the backboard.
Thompson drives to the buck. Photo/Joe Washington
Subdon says he’s seen about five or six of those, but the pass off the backboard was a different level.
Another lesser-known skill of Thompson’s is his ability to break the press, where he leads the way for the Vikings and is able to see teammates down the floor to take advantage of the numbers.
“Being 6-5 and being able to dribble like he can is not something you see come around a whole lot,” Subdon said.
In arguably the most notable moment of this season for Thompson so far, however, he was caught off guard. Thompson knew he was close to 1,000 points when he scored it against Fruitport at Reeths-Puffer in the Muskegon Area Sports Hall of Fame Holiday Classic Basketball Tournament, but he needed his coach to inform him why he was stopping the game.
“He wanted just to keep going,” Subdon said.
Subdon said that one of Thompson’s best traits is that he’s a good teammate, people enjoy playing with him and the success hasn’t gone to his head.
“If you ask any of his teammates, they like playing with him,” Subdon said. “Some of the star players, you find out later, people didn’t like playing with him. I don’t think you can find one player, past or present, who doesn’t enjoy playing with him.”
Photo/Joe Washington
