Derthona is completed: TaShawn Thomas arrives in black and white
TaShawn Marquez Thomas signed a contract with Bertram Derthona last night. The 93-born center/forward has enjoyed a remarkable career, filled with victories, accolades, and numerous high-level experiences.
"It's no secret that TaShawn Thomas has been a player we've been interested in for a while ," said Marco Picchi , President of Bertram Derthona. " We had already discussed him last year, and we're happy that the deal came to fruition this time. We believe he has the right characteristics to complete our big man department, which will ultimately complete our roster. We're confident we've achieved the goals we set ourselves at the start of the transfer window: improving the team's fitness and selecting players, including Thomas, who already have European experience and can help us make our European debut . "
CAREER – Born in Las Vegas (Nevada) on February 27, 1993, Thomas took his first steps at Killeen High School, which he led to two district titles and with whom he closed his senior season averaging 21 points and 13 rebounds. Chosen by the Houston Cougars for college, in his freshman year he was included in the 1st team of Conference USA. In the following two years he increased his performance in terms of points and rebounds, so much so that he was chosen in the second ideal quintet of the American Athletic Conference (AAC) in 2013/2014.
On February 27, 2014 he became the seventh player in the history of the Houston Cougars to collect at least 1300 points and 800 rebounds: this elite, in addition to TaShawn, includes players of the caliber of Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and Elvin Hayes, who later became NBA legends .
He moved to the Oklahoma Sooners for his senior collegiate year, leading the team to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament. After not being selected in the NBA Draft, Thomas played the 2015 Summer League with the Orlando Magic shirt, before signing - in the summer of the same year - a contract with Mittledeutscher BC, thus starting his European career.
After the year in Germany, he took part in the 2016 Summer League with the Los Angeles Clippers, before choosing Vanoli Cremona as the new stage of his career. In his first Italian experience, Thomas averaged 9 points and 7 rebounds in all competitions.
He then moved to Israel in 2017/18, signing a contract with Hapoel Holon, with whom he won the Israeli Cup and reached the final of the Israeli League Cup, losing against Maccabi Tel Aviv. With the team, he also competes in the BCL, in which he records 13.9 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
In the following three years he wore the Hapoel Jerusalem jersey, with which he won an Israeli League Cup in 2019 and two Israeli Cups (2018/19, 2019/20). TaShawn is named MVP of the Israeli Cup in 2019; in the same year he was chosen as the best defender of the championship. With Hapoel he played in the Basketball Champions League in all three years, growing in performance season after season, reaching an average of 17.5 points and 6.2 rebounds in 2020/21. The Israeli team reached the quarter-finals of the competition twice and, in 2019/20, TaShawn was included in the ideal quintet. In the history of the BCL, the new Derthona player is eighth in points scored (738), sixth in rebounds (317) and first in blocks (67).
Having concluded his experience in Jerusalem, in the summer of 2021 Thomas signed with Le Mans, with whom he contested the Pro A championship and was included in the All-First Team at the end of the regular season.
He began 2022/23 in Australia, wearing the Perth Wildcats jersey, before returning to Europe, at the Metropolitans 92 Boulougne-Levallois, in February 2023. With the French team he reached the Pro A final, losing against Monaco. Now TaShawn comes to Bertram Derthona to start a new chapter in his career.
"The signing of TaShawn Thomas, along the lines of the other signings, brings us a player with experience at various levels, including European competition, and who has the profile to be the most functional addition to our roster ," said Marco Ramondino , head coach of Bertram Derthona. " He is a versatile player with technical qualities that make him important not only in finishing plays but also in building play. From a defensive standpoint, we believe he will allow us to explore different solutions compatible with the characteristics of our full-backs . "
