Pistons' Ausar Thompson lands 5-year, $155M extension, sources say

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Detroit Pistons All-Defensive forward Ausar Thompson has agreed to a five-year, $155 million rookie-scale contract extension with the franchise, sources told ESPN.

Thompson lands the fully guaranteed extension after making first-team All-Defense and finishing third in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season. The 23-year-old averaged 9.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 0.9 blocks in 2025-26 while leading the NBA in steals per game (2.0).

Overall, Thompson had the third-most steals and blocks last season at 215 and is one of three players with at least 300 steals and 150 blocks since entering the league as the No. 5 pick in the 2023 draft.

In 14 playoff games during Detroit's run to the Eastern Conference semifinals, Thompson averaged 8.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2 steals and 1.8 blocks, becoming the first player with 25 total steals and 25 total blocks in a postseason since Anthony Davis in 2020.

Thompson and his twin, Amen Thompson of the Houston Rockets, are now the first pair of brothers in NBA history to each receive a $100 million deal. Amen Thompson signed a five-year, $208 million rookie extension with the Rockets recently -- giving both a combined $363 million this offseason.

Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon has held concurrent negotiations with two priority players in restricted free agent Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson. The Pistons have remained engaged in talks with Duren since June, offering a contract in the $190-plus million range, and thus far the two sides have been dug in, with Detroit believing it has made fair offers while Duren has wanted more.

Thompson's sophomore season was cut short when he was diagnosed with a blood clot in March 2024. Eight months later, Thompson was cleared by the NBA's fitness-to-play panel and successfully returned to action.