Meleek Thomas' Special NBA Debut

When James Harden made his NBA debut, Meleek Thomas was three years, two months, and 23 days old. 

That’s not to make James Harden look old. The exact opposite, in fact. 

Now age 37, two months and a day, Harden finished with 19 points, a game-high nine assists, five boards and a pair of steals in the 789^th win of his career – a 127-125 overtime thriller over the Timberwolves. 

But Harden wasn’t the story on Monday night in Cleveland. Neither was Donovan Mitchell, who led the Cavs with 26 points, or Peyton Watson, who led both teams with four blocks, or Evan Mobley, who went 4-of-5 from deep and whose three late bombs keyed the victory. 

Monday’s spotlight shone brightest on the Wine & Gold’s youngest player – Meleek Thomas, making his career debut in dramatic fashion, leading all reserves with 16 points in 19 electric minutes off the bench, going 6-of-10 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from long-range, adding a pair of boards and a steal. 

If there’s one word that’s been used to describe the 20-year-old rookie through his brief tenure in Cleveland, it is “confident.” Anyone who’s watched him over the summer leading up to Monday’s debut knew that he’d let it fly the moment he hit the hardwood. The Pittsburgh native officially took the floor for the first time when he checked in with 5:53 remaining in the first quarter, missed his first three-point attempt less than two minutes later and didn’t miss another one the rest of the night. 

“Confidence really don't come for nobody else,” smiled the Pittsburgh native following the win. “You got it or you don’t. Either you got heart, you got dawg, or you don’t. And I got everything that I need. It's just a matter of time before everything is shown. So, yeah, if I'm open, it's going up – and it's going in. That's always my mindset. So, unless somebody's right there next to me open, then I just feel strong about it at all times.”

Thomas’ first NBA bucket was a running layup on a beautiful feed from Donovan Mitchell with 3:39 to play in the first quarter. But before the period was up, Thomas would proceed to splash home a pair of triples – each one igniting the Cavs bench and the Rocket Arena crowd after a sluggish start. 

“It's very rare to ride the coattails of a rookie going into a half like that,” said Mitchell. “Like, we didn't have energy, we were flat, we were playing the wrong way. We weren't doing the right things, and for him to be the spark in his first game of the year, like, it's not normal. And that speaks to him, his preparation, his confidence, his concentration, attention to detail. And it was, he made some mistakes, but they were aggressive mistakes. 

“Fearless, right? Just trying to find ways to impact the game at the highest level. And I told him the best part of his game wasn't even the 16 points. It was the energy. So, credit to him for staying ready and continually asking questions and making sure he's in the right spot.”

While acknowledging that the rookie will have to do it night after night, Kenny Atkinson praised his young combo guard after the win. 

“The vets love him,” said Atkinson. “You know, they love him because he can play, but they love him because he listens, he's inquisitive. And as a rookie, you gotta strike that chord with the locker room. You gotta fit into the locker room. You can't be too full of yourself. You’ve got to strike the right balance with those guys. The feedback is that they just love being around this guy. He gets it, he's smart, he's asking questions. Donovan said he sends him clips all the time. He's rare. And like I said in Training Camp, I think he's gonna be special.”

The 34^th overall pick out of Arkansas in this June’s Draft, Thomas was a consensus five-star prep recruit who won two Pennsylvania state titles, Thomas led the Razorbacks as a freshman in three-point shooting (.416), from the free throw line (.844), and in steals (51). 

In this year’s NBA Summer League session in Las Vegas, Thomas led everyone in scoring (27.3 PPG) and field goal attempts (20.5) and was second overall in field goals makes (10.3). He shot an even 50 percent from the floor and 44 percent from long-range.

Now, he’s with the big boys. He’s backing up a pair of future Hall of Famers and as thrilling as his career debut was on Monday, he’ll be expected to be just as sharp on Wednesday night against Washington and the following night in Atlanta. Luckily, he’ll have a duo of All-Star veterans to lean on. 

“(Their support) means the world to me,” said Thomas. “I've watched both of their games for so long before I got to this position. So, for them to just take me under their wing and just constantly help me, constantly stay in my ear, it just goes to show that they see how much potential that I see in myself. And it means the world to me, because they’re guys that I look up to – basketball-wise, and as great human beings, great men. I can see that they want the best for me, and vice versa.”