College Commitment: Evan Thompson (2022 Churchill)

For Evan Thompson Evan Thompson 6'3" | SG Churchill | 2022 State OR , finding the right place to continue playing his college basketball career came down to a whole host of factors. Sure, the lanky 6-foot-3 swingman was looking hard at the hoops side of the equation but of huge importance was his career goal of becoming an athletic trainer or physical therapist. Pacific was the program that matched all that he was looking for and the Churchill senior recently made a verbal commitment to be a Boxer.

"For basketball, they have a program that seems to be based around work ethic and dedication," Thompson said. "I want to be around people who are grinding every day, so I can improve myself as a person and an athlete, so it seemed like a place like I would belong."

"The school itself is pretty awesome," Thompson continued. "It’s small, so I can develop a close relationship with my professors, and it is also relatively close to home, so I can commute if I need to. I was happy to hear that they offered Chinese, because I moved here from Guangzhou, China, and in the past two years, I haven’t been able to practice my Chinese as much, which is a skill I don’t want to lose."

An all-around player who can defend multiple positions, Thompson made his mark at Churchill this season with his shot. He nailed threes at a 51 percent clip, a mark that ranks third all-time in school history. He knows he’s got room to improve to play at the college level and that’s what he’s focused on this summer.

"I definitely want to get a tighter handle on the ball," Thompson said. "I also want to get to a point where I can shoot the ball at a high percentage from a couple of feet behind the college three-point line. And always, hit the weights to get bigger and stronger."

Thompson reflected back on this past season with the Lancers, his very last at the high school level. "I think this year went really awesome considering everything that happened with COVID-19," Thompson said "We got to play in the LSI, and the MLK Invitational, which were two great experiences, won league and got third at State, which was one of the most fun games I’ve been a part of. Playing at Oregon State was sick."

"Individually it was fun as well, considering the constant ups and downs that come with injuries," Thompson continued. "I started a few games but came off the bench normally, and overall I had a great time filling out my role and playing with some great guys."

Thompson currently ranks as the #98 player in the PrepHoops Oregon Class of 2022 rankings. Our congratulations go out to him and his family on his decision.