In two straight seasons, Amen Thompson has gone from high-flying highlight maker to headline grabber for all the wrong reasons. Last year, the Houston Rockets guard was ejected after a heated exchange with Miami’s Tyler Herro. This week, he found himself in another physical dust-up, this time with a much smaller Pelicans guard, Jose Alvarado.

The clip made its rounds quickly. Thompson didn’t like the way he was boxed out, so he grabbed the guard by the face and neck, twisting him to the ground before teammates pulled him away. It was another flash of frustration from one of the league’s most promising young players, and it left fans wondering: why is Amen Thompson letting smaller players get to him so easily?

Herro’s reaction after their fight last year summed it up perfectly: “Guess that’s what happens when someone’s scoring, throwing dimes, doing the whole thing. I’d get mad too,” FoxSports reports. Even Rockets coach Ime Udoka tried to downplay it, saying, “They were in each other’s face, bumping chests a little bit, and one guy’s stronger than the other.”

Both incidents tell the same story. When smaller guards poke and prod, Amen reacts instead of resets. And in a league where emotional discipline can be the difference between stardom and stagnation, that’s a dangerous trend.

Learning to control the fire

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Amen’s competitive energy is part of what makes him electric. He plays with a motor that never shuts off, slicing through defenses and defending with ferocity. But that same fire can work against him when his focus shifts from the game to proving a point.

Players like Herro and Alvarado thrive on that dynamic. They can’t match Thompson’s athleticism, so they use mind games. They chirp, bump, and test boundaries, hoping to pull him out of rhythm. When he takes the bait, they’ve already won.

This is a crucial stage for Amen. Every great player eventually learns that passion is a tool, not a trap. For young stars, emotional control is the final layer of polish. The league has seen this story before in players like Russell Westbrook, Draymond Green, and even early Jimmy Butler. They're fiery competitors who learned to channel aggression instead of unleashing it.

If Amen Thompson finds that balance, his ceiling remains sky-high. But until then, every opponent under six-foot-four will know the same trick: if you can’t stop him physically, just get in his head.