Thompson wants to be part of winning culture in Canadian basketball team
MONTREAL — With seconds left in Tuesday’s scrimmage, Kelly Olynyk fired a pass to Aaron Best in the corner. Best drained the game-winning three-pointer as the buzzer sounded. A grinning Tristan Thompson sprinted onto the floor and wrapped his long arms around Best.
The scene — an NBA champion celebrating a Canadian university product — said plenty about this version of Canada’s men’s basketball team, which hosts Brazil on Thursday in World Cup qualifying in Laval, Que.
Thompson said he’ll happily play the part of team leader.
“Definitely the experience and just being part of a journey that guys look at and they want to pick my brain, ask questions,” Thompson said on what he gives the team. “And it’s not just myself, it’s me, Kelly and Cory (Joseph), we have a lot of experience both NBA and international, where we can help these guys and kind of just build a culture.