Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune

Tribune

Guard Dijon Thompson (middle) takes a break during Thunderbirds practice. Thompson was a second-round NBA draft pick in 2005 and played in 10 games for the Phoenix Suns last season, averaging 4.3 minutes per contest. With Albuquerque, Thompson is averaging 42.8 minutes. "It feels great to actually play a lot," Thompson said. "I'll have to make sure I can do the same thing in the NBA."

Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune

Tribune

Thunderbirds guard Dijon Thompson waits for a rebound during practice. Thompson heads into Friday night's game at Tingley as the reigning D-League Performer of the Week. His 20.2 points, 10 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game for the 5-2 T-Birds all rank in the D-League's top 10.

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Since middle school, the one thing that fueled Dijon Thompson's basketball world was the purity of the game.

Then basketball became a business.

Welcome to the NBA, where dreams are shattered as often as they are forged.

"You never think it's going to be that way until it happens to you," Thompson said.

Thompson - who's now slicing through NBA-Development League defenses for the Albuquerque Thunderbirds - suffered a harsh reality in the offseason when the Phoenix Suns released him.

Only a year passed as Thompson went from NBA second-round draft pick to temporarily unemployed.

Ironically, Thompson now enters every D-League game with a businessman's mentality.

His all-business attitude will be on display Friday and Saturday as the T-Birds play a back-to-back series against the Colorado 14ers.

Thompson enters the games as the reigning D-League Performer of the Week. His 20.2 points, 10 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game for the 5-2 T-Birds all rank in the D-League's top 10.

The old Thompson was never a shoot-first player, but more of a versatile playmaker.

Though he claims to be the same player, the new Thompson is admittedly a little selfish.

"People, whether it was teammates or NBA executives, kept telling me to be aggressive and to be selfish with the ball," said the 23-year-old Thompson, who scored 2.8 points per game in 10 games for Phoenix.

"I've never been that type of player, but that's what I'm doing now. And it feels great because I'm getting to show what I can do."

After getting cut by the Golden State Warriors in training camp, Thompson was looking to play for a coach who could prepare him for round two of the NBA.

His agent called T-Birds coach Michael Cooper.

The coach and player already had built a rapport. The Phoenix Suns, an affiliate of the T-Birds, sent Thompson to Albuquerque last season for a brief assignment.

"I didn't want to play for any other coach," Thompson said. "He knows what it takes, and he teaches great defense."

Cooper said he would have liked more time with Thompson last season, but his newest star is making up for lost time these days.

"He's doing everything for us right now," Cooper said. "He's a scorer, he's a great rebounder and he's a better passer than people think he is."

All this is happening for a player who says he's not completely healthy.

Thompson underwent knee surgery in March for an injury similar to what former Phoenix Suns teammate Amare Stoudemire suffered.

Thompson attributes the injury as part of the reason for his release from the Suns, but he's recovered smoothly and said his knee is "close to 100 percent."

The knee won't detract from his chances of NBA stardom, Cooper said.

"He's going to be up in the (NBA) in February (when 10-day contracts start)."

Maybe NBA general managers should heed Cooper's accurate predictions about his Thunderbirds.

Last season, Cooper said his power forward, Chuck Hayes, would be a full-time NBA player. Hayes is averaging seven rebounds per game for the Houston Rockets.

In the offseason, Cooper said center Andreas Glyniadakis would make the league. Glyniadakis is now a center with the Seattle Supersonics.

If Thompson is poised to be the next T-Bird promoted, he plans to savor his time - on the court especially - in Albuquerque.

The basketball purist in Thompson says 42.8 minutes per game (his average with Albuquerque) is better than 4.3 (his average last season with Phoenix) in a bigger league.

Of course, most every player's dream is to stick in the NBA, Thompson included.

But he's having so much fun.

"It feels great to actually play a lot," Thompson said. "I'll have to make sure I can do the same thing in the NBA."