Detroit Pistons rookie Ausar Thompson was one of the brightest spots in the entire NBA during preseason. The fifth overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft, Thompson quickly showed fans a glimpse to his incredible two-way potential; not only did he flash an improved jumpshot, he was also a wrecking ball on the defensive end of the court, hauling in rebounds and being a nuisance in the passing lanes as well as at the rim. And it looks like those are skills that would translate very quickly, as evidenced by the stellar defensive performance he put up in his regular season debut against the Miami Heat.

Pistons head coach Monty Williams trusted Thompson in a tough matchup against the likes of Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro. But the rookie showed that he's not going to be barbecue chicken at all on defense. The 6'7 forward put up an eye-popping total of five blocked shots, displaying impeccable timing and positioning which allowed him to be such a disruptive presence on that end of the floor.

And in doing so, Ausar Thompson became the youngest player in NBA history to tally five or more blocks in their career debut, at 20 years old and 269 days. The previous record holder was Shawn Bradley, who did so at 21 years of age during the 1993-94 season for the Philadelphia 76ers. On top of his rejections, Thompson finished with four points, seven rebounds and three assists.

What makes this such an unfathomable feat is that Thompson gives up 11 inches to Bradley, who stands at 7'6. Bradley also played in an era where players tended to take more shots in the paint, as the three-point revolution was yet to unfold and spacing was very much suboptimal. So for the Pistons rookie to be doing these things is simply marvelous.

Alas, Ausar Thompson clearly has a lot of work left to do on the offensive end of the court to earn his keep. The Pistons opted to roll with Alec Burks as they were mounting their fourth-quarter comeback against the Heat (which fell short in a 103-102 loss) due to Burks' more versatile offensive skillset. But it's clear that Thompson is going to play a huge role in the Pistons' quest to return to relevancy.