Feb 8, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) and Houston Rockets forward Amen Thompson (1) in action during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Houston Rockets at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Mavericks' Kyrie Irving Has High Praise for Rockets' Amen Thompson

Originally posted on Houston Rockets on SI
By Alec Elijah | Last updated Jul 12, 2025 7:21 PM ET

While the NBA Summer League is typically a place where front offices and fans can gauge their young talent before the regular season, it is also a place where current NBA superstars can run into one another as players come to Las Vegas to show support for their newly acquired teammates.

This was the case when Mavericks star Kyrie Irving ran into Rockets rising star Amen Thompson while walking through the Thomas & Mack Center Friday afternoon. Irving, who is currently rehabbing an ACL injury from March, has recently taken up live streaming on Twitch, which is where this link-up between the two stars was recorded.

Irving had high praise for Thompson as they shook hands in the lobby of the arena. While it was a brief moment between the two stars, it was still something to give fans something to smile about.

Kyrie and Amen Thompson link up in Vegas.

One of the most talented players to play the game, LIVE on his stream says: “he’s about to be running this league.”

pic.twitter.com/BAAFoiC58z
— Chancellor Johnson (@ChancellorTV) July 12, 2025

"By the way, that's one of the dogs of the league.... He’s about to be running this league for a while,” said Irving as he departed from Thompson.

The superstar guard has always been high on the Thompson twin, along with his brother, Ausar, who plays for the Detroit Pistons. Back when the two brothers were still NBA prospects, a video was published by ESPN's TikTok that featured Irving telling both the boys, “You guys will be here someday.”

“You guys will be here someday.”

— Kyrie Irving to Amen and Ausar Thompson.#Rockets pic.twitter.com/ezTCsU2RZM
— ᵂᴵᴸᴸ (@BiasedHouston) June 9, 2024

Amen, who is coming off of his second season where he took home an NBA All-Defensive First team honors, will look to build off a great year as he and the Rockets prepare for the 2025-26 NBA season.

His offseason has featured work with the renowned Guard Whisperer Olin Simplis, the same trainer who helped get NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ready for his leap in the league. If Thompson can remain hard at work, especially on the offensive side of his game, then Kyrie's statement will certainly ring true about Amen being one of the future faces of the league.

This article first appeared on Houston Rockets on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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