Isaiah Thomas

Isaiah Jamar Thomas (born February 7, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA G League.

Isaiah Thomas was born on February 7, 1989 to James Thomas and Tina Baldtrip.

A lifelong Lakers fan, James Thomas made a bet with a friend that if his beloved team did not defeat the Detroit Pistons in the 1989 NBA Finals, he would name his son after Pistons star and decorated Lakers nemesis Isiah Thomas.

Thomas was born months before the finals took place but his father had warmed to the name and his mother consented on the condition that the Biblical spelling of Isaiah was utilized.

Thomas was born and raised in Tacoma, Washington.

As a child, he had the nicknames "Bighead" (or Head) from his father and "Zeke" (which was Isiah Thomas's nickname) from his mother.

He called a news briefing on April 20, 2006, to announce his intention to sign with the University of Washington.

Thomas received the blessing of Nate Robinson, the former Washington Huskies star, to wear his No. 2 jersey.

He graduated from the Connecticut prep school in 2008.

At Curtis High, playing for the varsity basketball team, Thomas had averaged 31.2 points per game as a junior.

He scored a season-high 27 points in an 81–67 home win over Morgan State on December 30, 2008.

Thomas averaged 15.5 points, 2.6 assists, and 3.0 rebounds per game as a true freshman.

He was named Pac-10 Freshman of the Year.

As a sophomore, his averages rose to 16.9 points, 3.2 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game.

He was selected first team All-Pac-10.

Thomas was again named first team All-Pac-10 in his junior year.

After electing to forgo his senior year of college, Thomas was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the final pick in the 2011 NBA draft.

Thomas attended Curtis Senior High School in University Place, Washington, through 11th grade.

As his grades had to improve to earn a scholarship, he repeated his senior year across the country at South Kent School in South Kent, Connecticut.

On March 12, 2011, Thomas scored 28 points and hit a game-winning buzzer beater in overtime to lead the Huskies to victory over Arizona in the championship game of the Pac-10 tournament.

He was among the final ten candidates for the Bob Cousy Award in his junior season.

On March 31, 2011, Thomas declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final year of college eligibility.

Before the 2011 NBA draft, Thomas participated in his own pre-draft documentary entitled "Road to the NBA–The Isaiah Thomas Story".

Thomas was selected in the second round of the 2011 NBA draft with the 60th and final pick by the Sacramento Kings.

On February 19, 2012, Thomas recorded his first double-double with 23 points and 11 assists against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

On March 1, 2012, Thomas was named the February Western Conference NBA Rookie of the Month after averaging 12.2 points and 4.4 assists per contest in February.

No player before had gone on to win Rookie of the Month honors after being picked last in the NBA draft.

On April 2, 2012, Thomas was once again named Western Conference NBA Rookie of the Month after posting averages of 13.6 points and 4.9 assists per contest in March.

Thomas was also named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team and finished seventh in NBA Rookie of the Year voting.

He spent three seasons with the Kings before joining the Phoenix Suns in 2014.

On January 19, 2014, Thomas scored a then-career-high of 38 points during a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Five days later, he tied this same total in points against the Indiana Pacers.

On March 18, 2014, he recorded his first career triple-double with 24 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 117–111 overtime win over the Washington Wizards; in so doing, Thomas became the shortest player to ever record a triple-double in the NBA.

He most notably played with the Boston Celtics from 2015 through 2017, when he was a two-time NBA All-Star and named second-team All-NBA.

The 5 ft point guard played three years of college basketball for the Washington Huskies and was a three-time all-conference selection in the Pac-10.

Thomas was traded to Boston in February 2015.

In the 2016–17 season, he led the Celtics to the first seed of the Eastern Conference, had the third-highest points-per-game average in the league, and finished fifth in MVP voting.

After injuring his right hip during the 2016–2017 season, Thomas was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in August 2017.

Over the next several seasons, Thomas's hip injury significantly hampered his play.

Thomas went on to play for the Los Angeles Lakers, the Denver Nuggets, the Washington Wizards, the New Orleans Pelicans, the Dallas Mavericks, the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League, and the Charlotte Hornets.