$155 million: Ausar Thompson's contract, $363 million combined with his twin brother's

The Detroit Pistons have agreed to a 5-year, $155 million extension with Ausar Thompson. Combined with the contract of his twin brother Amen Thompson, the total is $363 million.

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At 6:35 p.m. ET on September 18, ESPN's Shams Charania broke the news first: the Detroit Pistons and Ausar Thompson had agreed to a 5-year, $155 million extension. Thompson averaged 9.9 points last season. But he led the league with 2.0 steals per game and was named to the All-Defensive First Team.

Ausar Thompson's contract structure: 5 years fully guaranteed, averaging $31 million per year

According to ESPN, the contract is fully guaranteed and takes effect starting with the 2027-28 season. HoopsHype and RotoWire reported that the contract runs through the 2031-32 season. The average annual value is $31 million (total ÷ 5 years).

Comparing it with this year's salary shows the size of the raise. Spotrac figures show his 2026-27 salary, the fourth year of his rookie contract, is $11,117,925. The new contract's average of $31 million per year is about 2.8 times that.

No. 1 in steals, All-Defensive First Team: the case for paying a 9.9-point scorer

His 2025-26 numbers were averages of 9.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 0.9 blocks. He led the league with 2.0 steals per game. According to The Detroit News, Thompson became the first Pistons player to make the All-Defensive First Team since Ben Wallace, 20 years ago. In Defensive Player of the Year voting, he finished third behind Wembanyama and Holmgren.

Detroit went 60-22 and finished first in the East. In 14 playoff games, Thompson recorded 7.9 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.8 blocks. ESPN reported that he is the first player since Anthony Davis in 2020 to top 25 in both steals and blocks in a single postseason.

Twin brother Amen's $208 million; 4th in extension rankings among draft classmates

2023 Draft Class Rookie-Scale Extension Totals (as of 2026.09.19)

Rank	Player	Team	Extension total (5 years)	Notes
1	Victor Wembanyama	San Antonio	$252 million	25% of salary cap max, fifth-year player option
2	Amen Thompson	Houston	$208 million	10% trade kicker
3	Keyonte George	Utah	$157.5 million	No option
4	Ausar Thompson	Detroit	$155 million	Fully guaranteed
-	Brandon Miller	Charlotte	Unsigned	In negotiations

The gap with his brother is $53 million. Amen averaged 18.3 points and 5.3 assists in 79 games in 2025-26, and his minutes played ranked first in the league. The gap with third-place Keyonte George is $2.5 million.

Combined, the two contracts total $363 million. ESPN and Yahoo Sports reported that this is the first time in NBA history that both brothers have signed contracts worth more than $100 million. Houston general manager Rafael Stone said through NBA.com, "Amen represents everything our franchise is striving for."

According to Yahoo Sports, Detroit has offered restricted free agent center Jalen Duren about $190 million or more. Duren's side is reportedly seeking $287 million over 5 years (as of 2026.09.18). The gap is as much as $97 million. Because Thompson's year-by-year salaries have not been disclosed, the effect on the salary cap cannot yet be calculated.

The deadline for rookie-scale extensions is 5 p.m. CT on October 19. Charlotte's Brandon Miller remains unsigned (as of 2026.09.19). Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus projected that Miller will sign for 5 years and about $191 million. In that case, Ausar would drop to 5th among his draft classmates.

Related official sites

Official NBA website — Check Ausar and Amen Thompson's season stats and each team's contract announcements
NBA.com announcement of Amen Thompson's extension — Check the details of his 5-year, $208 million contract with Houston and the team's comments

Representative image · Archive photo · Not an on-site photo of the current game in the article · Photo: Wikimedia Commons (Pikraken), CC BY 4.0