Veteran guard Isaiah Thomas reacted on X (formerly Twitter) after the Phoenix Suns officially announced his 10-day deal with the team.
Ready to make a positive impact everyday!!! Let’s get straight to it 🏁🏁🏁 https://t.co/gSBMY6E3Ok
— Isaiah Thomas (@isaiahthomas) March 20, 2024
— Isaiah Thomas (@isaiahthomas) March 20, 2024
— Isaiah Thomas (@isaiahthomas) March 20, 2024
Over the weekend, Utah Jazz executive and former Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge sent NBA insider Shams Charania a wholesome text regarding the news of Thomas’ new deal. Ainge may have had a hand in Thomas’ return to the NBA.
“I got a great text statement from Danny Ainge over the weekend,” Charania said. “Obviously their relationship, when Isaiah Thomas got traded from Boston, we know there was a little bit of a grudge held there. There was a little bit of a cold stint in that relationship.
“Then Danny Ainge brings Isaiah Thomas back to the Utah Jazz organization. He plays with the Salt Lake City Stars that leads to this call-up now.
“Danny Ainge told me, ‘He’s special, as driven as anyone I know. He made a difference to everyone he was around in 10 short days in the G League. I couldn’t be happier for him. Good pickup by the Suns.’”
Before signing with the Suns, Thomas played for Salt Lake City — Utah’s G League affiliate — earlier in the month. He put up huge numbers across four appearances with the team, as he averaged 32.5 points, 5.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 40.7 percent from the field and 44.6 percent from 3-point range.
He hasn’t played a regular-season contest in the NBA since the 2021-22 campaign, when he logged 22 combined appearances with the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks and Charlotte Hornets.
The 35-year-old played the best basketball of his NBA career during his three-season stint with the storied Celtics franchise. He earned two All-Star nods and helped lead the Celtics to three playoff appearances, including an Eastern Conference Finals berth in 2017.
Thomas was arguably one of the best players in the world in his third and final season with the Celtics, the 2016-17 campaign. Across 76 regular-season appearances, he averaged 28.9 points and 5.9 assists per game on 46.3 percent shooting from the floor and 37.9 percent shooting from deep.
The guard finished fifth in the MVP voting that season, behind only Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and LeBron James. He ended up in fifth place in voting for the Most Improved Player award as well.
However, Thomas was unable to replicate his elite scoring production after the Celtics traded him to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2017 offseason. He hasn’t come close to averaging 20 points per game in a season since leaving Boston.
While Thomas isn’t the star he once was, his NBA experience means he could serve as a valuable presence in the Suns locker room, and perhaps he’ll even make an impact on the floor.
