Pistons Rookie’s Putback Dunk Goes Viral on Social Media

Thursday night was a good one for the Detroit Pistons, who found themselves collecting their tenth win of the year against the Brooklyn Nets at home.

In a game where there was plenty to celebrate for the home squad, the Pistons’ rookie Ausar Thompson put together a highlight play that went viral on social media.

Getting some love shown to him on the NBA’s official X account, Thompson’s putback slam dunk caught the attention of hundreds of thousands of users for good reason.

Ausar Thompson gets WAY above the rim for the putback slam 😳

Nets-Pistons | Live on the NBA App
📲 https://t.co/hqKBVj2vrg pic.twitter.com/J97IJLjKPz
— NBA (@NBA) March 8, 2024

As the Pistons were in a tight battle with the Nets with the clock running down in the third quarter, Thompson shook up Little Caesars Arena by capitalizing off of an unsuccessful field goal attempt by James Wiseman.

Showing off his hops, Thompson fearlessly attempted the putback with several defenders in the area. When he found success on the slam, Thompson helped the Pistons extend their lead to seven points before heading into the fourth quarter.

Thompson ended up totaling 43 minutes on Thursday. During that time, he scored 14 points while dishing out three assists and grabbing seven rebounds. The Pistons put the Nets away with a 118-112 victory to advance to 10-52 on the year.

During his rookie effort with the Pistons, Thompson has put some impressive two-way performances on display. While he continues to put extra focus on his long-range shooting, an area where he could use a lot of improvement, Thompson is still excelling in the game while working through his growing pains.

This season, Thompson has averaged nine points, six rebounds, two assists, one block, and one steal per game in 61 matchups.

Since returning from the All-Star break, he improved in the scoring and steals categories while shooting efficiently from the field, knocking down 51 percent of his shots.