Another thing I remember from that game was that Tyrus was noticeably bigger than Marion.

I especially like this quote:

One piece of evidence of his commitment to improvement? Look at his free throw percentage. Over a span of 15 games in January and February, Thomas shot 27-30 from the line. That’s 90 percent, and doesn’t happen by hoping. It takes daily, focused work – and a professional mindset to improve some young players never develop.

Naturally, one of the few tangible signs of improvement shown by a player was publicly derided by the coaching staff.

the author (Moreau) was Thabo’s trainer at IMG.

...but maybe sitting Tyrus was a case of anti-showcasing. I mean, maybe Paxson believes SO MUCH in Tyrus that he didn’t want him to play, knowing he’d be awesome good, and teams would swoop in with ridiculous trade offers that would seriously tempt Pax. Ya think that’s the case. Anti-showcasing?

would put some effort into their jobs and forage for little nuggets like this—before firing off their next rounds of unwarranted anti-Tyrus screed.

All they’re doing is turning the local fans away from the guy, and in the process making it more difficult for Paxson, whether he likes Thomas or not (and I suspect he does—my impression is that he’s been reluctant to include Thomas’ name in trade talks), to throw his public support behind Tyrus.