Onalaska's Thomas signs 3-year deal with NBA champs
After lighting up the NBA’s Summer League two seasons ago, Onalaska native Matt Thomas is back.
It was Thomas and Kyle Kuzma that stole the show a few years ago in winning the Vegas Summer League for the L.A. Lakers.
Now, Kuzma is the remaining piece in a gutted Lakers team, alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, while the 6-foot-5 Thomas just signed with the NBA champs, after spending the last two years in Spain.
The 24-year-old Thomas was offered a three-year, $4.2 million contract by the Toronto Raptors, coming off experiencing the EuroCup championship.
Overseas, Thomas shot 48.5 percent from beyond the arc for Valencia, which went 45-18 and won the EuroCup title.
Thomas, a 2013 Onalaska High School graduate, was a four-year starter for Iowa State, where he capped off his career with a 25-point game, nailing a career-high seven (7-for-11) 3-pointers. He took that momentum right into summer league.
Thomas wasn’t drafted by the Lakers. He was offered a two-way contract by the Raptors, but opted to play with the Lakers, instead.
In his final three games in Vegas for the Lakers, Thomas scored 50 points, going 14-for-16 from beyond the arc.
In the Summer League quarterfinals, Thomas scored 17, going 3-for-4 from deep. In the semifinals, he was 6-for-7 and scored 20 points.
It’s not likely Thomas will play in Summer League this season, as he’s coming off surgery to remove a hematoma.
In high school, Thomas helped the Hilltoppers win a state title his junior year, scoring 30 points on 9-of-18 shooting. He was 4-for-7 from deep in that 55-38 win over Kaukauna back in March of 2012.
TOP PHOTO: Matt Thomas during Summer League play in Las Vegas for the Los Angeles Lakers.