Darius Thompson
American basketball player
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Darius Jamar Thompson (born May 4, 1995) is an American-born naturalized Italian professional basketball player for Valencia of Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. Standing at 193 cm (6 ft 4 in), he plays at the point guard position.
EuroLeague
Thompson in 2024 | |
| No. 13 – Valencia Basket | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard |
| League | Liga ACB EuroLeague |
| Personal information | |
| Born | May 4, 1995 Murfreesboro, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Nationality | American / Italian |
| Listed height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) |
| Listed weight | 89 kg (196 lb) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Blackman (Murfreesboro, Tennessee) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 2017: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2017–present |
| Career history | |
| 2017–2019 | ZZ Leiden |
| 2019–2021 | Brindisi |
| 2021–2022 | Lokomotiv Kuban |
| 2022–2023 | Baskonia |
| 2023–2025 | Anadolu Efes |
| 2025–present | Valencia |
| Career highlights | |
| |

Early life
Thompson was born in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and is the son of Lonnie Thompson, who played basketball for Middle Tennessee State, and Felicia Thompson.[1]
Playing for Blackman High School, Thompson was a 2013 McDonald's All-American Game nominee and was ranked the no. 4 best combo guard in the country by 247Sports.com. In his senior year with Blackman, he averaged 16.4 points and 6.4 assists.[1]
College career
Professional career
ZZ Leiden
In August 2017, Thompson signed a one-year contract with ZZ Leiden of the Dutch Basketball League (DBL) and FIBA Europe Cup.[2] On October 27, 2017, Thompson scored 32 points in a 73–78 win over Den Helder Suns.[3] On November 7, Thompson led Leiden to a win over Sakarya BB in the FIBA Europe Cup by scoring 36 points.[4] On March 31, Thompson won the NBB Cup with Leiden, after scoring 25 points in the final.[5] On April 24, 2019, Thompson won the DBL Most Valuable Player award.[6]
Brindisi
On July 23, 2019, Thompson signed a one-year contract with an option for a second season with Happy Casa Brindisi of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and Basketball Champions League (BCL).[7]
Lokomotiv Kuban
On July 1, 2021, Thompson left Brindisi after two years and signed in the VTB United League for the Russian team Lokomotiv Kuban.[8] He left the team after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[9] However he said that participation in this team was pleasant.
Baskonia
On August 12, 2022, Thompson signed a two-year (1+1) contract with Baskonia of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague.[10]
Thompson had a breakout season in 2022–23 with Baskonia. He led the EuroLeague in assists per game (averaging 6.7 per game) and was named to the All-EuroLeague Second Team.[11] Thompson was also voted the Best Newcomer by the EuroLeague Players' Association (ELPA).[12]
On July 7, 2023, Thompson parted ways with the Spanish club.
Anadolu Efes
On July 7, 2023, Thompson signed a three-year (2+1) contract with Turkish powerhouse Anadolu Efes, where he replaced star point guard Vasilije Micić who left the club for the Oklahoma City Thunder.[13]
Valencia
In July 2025, Thompson signed a three-year deal with Spanish club Valencia Basket. Thompson was still under contract with Anadolu Efes for the 2025-26 season, but both parties finalized a buyout agreement.[14]
National team career
Thompson has been recruited by the Italy national team, as he is eligible for an Italian passport because of his Italian wife, Chiara Pacifico.[15] He played for the Italian National team during Eurobasket 2025.
Career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | PIR | Performance index rating |
| Bold | Career high |
EuroLeague
| * | Led the league |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | Baskonia | 34 | 33 | 26.9 | .497 | .384 | .756 | 3.2 | 6.7* | 1.7 | .4 | 12.6 | 17.1 |
| 2023–24 | Anadolu Efes | 35 | 21 | 26.0 | .443 | .328 | .838 | 2.0 | 2.8 | 1.0 | .5 | 10.9 | 9.6 |
| Career | 69 | 54 | 26.4 | .470 | .355 | .793 | 2.6 | 4.7 | 1.3 | .5 | 11.7 | 13.3 | |
EuroCup
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG | PIR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Lokomotiv Kuban | 12 | 12 | 29.8 | .580 | .333 | .800 | 3.0 | 5.8 | 1.7 | .5 | 13.2 | 17.2 |
| Career | 12 | 12 | 29.8 | .580 | .333 | .800 | 3.0 | 5.8 | 1.7 | .5 | 13.2 | 17.2 | |
Basketball Champions League
FIBA Europe Cup
Domestic leagues
| Year | Team | League | GP | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | DBL | 38 | 35.2 | .540 | .399 | .820 | 4.1 | 5.4 | 2.6 | .4 | 19.0 | |
| 2019–20 | LBA | 21 | 26.3 | .480 | .460 | .711 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 1.3 | .4 | 11.6 | |
| 2020–21 | LBA | 31 | 28.7 | .495 | .306 | .735 | 2.9 | 5.4 | 1.7 | .7 | 12.7 | |
| 2021–22 | VTBUL | 11 | 28.2 | .462 | .273 | .640 | 4.4 | 5.7 | 2.1 | .6 | 9.8 | |
| 2022–23 | ACB | 34 | 22.0 | .500 | .408 | .826 | 2.5 | 6.1 | 1.1 | .4 | 10.2 | |
| 2023–24 | TBSL | 25 | 27.7 | .498 | .412 | .717 | 2.6 | 4.5 | 1.1 | .5 | 12.7 |
College
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | Tennessee | 37 | 10 | 16.8 | .381 | .195 | .733 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 1.0 | .2 | 2.5 |
| 2015–16 | Virginia | 37 | 10 | 17.5 | .537 | .390 | .722 | 1.2 | 1.4 | .7 | .2 | 4.3 |
| 2016–17 | Virginia | 33 | 14 | 20.8 | .448 | .351 | .605 | 1.6 | 2.2 | .8 | .4 | 6.2 |
| 2017–18 | Western Kentucky | 38 | 37 | 35.6 | .463 | .355 | .736 | 4.2 | 4.8 | 1.5 | .5 | 13.6 |
| Career | 145 | 71 | 22.8 | .461 | .338 | .712 | 2.3 | 2.7 | 1.0 | .3 | 6.7 | |
Honors
- ZZ Leiden
- NBB Cup: 2018–19
- DBL Most Valuable Player: 2018–19
- All-DBL Team: 2018–19
- DBL scoring leader: 2018–19
- DBL Statistical Player of the Year: 2018–19