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Jason Thompson glad to be a part of hometown 76ers

SALT LAKE CITY - Nik Stauskas was the centerpiece of the 76ers' deal with the Sacramento Kings last week, but another acquisition expects to help his new team.

SALT LAKE CITY - Nik Stauskas was the centerpiece of the 76ers' deal with the Sacramento Kings last week, but another acquisition expects to help his new team.

South Jersey's Jason Thompson intends to fulfill a vital role with the squad he grew up following.

"I'm expecting to come in here ready and have an impact from Day 1," Thompson said in a telephone interview. "I know they have a big amount of bigs, but I'm trying to come in there and re-amp myself."

The Sixers received the sharpshooting Stauskas, Thompson and Carl Landry, a 2018 protected first-round pick and the option to swap 2016 and 2017 first-rounders last week, all in exchange for recent second-round picks Arturas Gudaitis (47th overall) and Luke Mitrovic (60th). Thompson and Landry were thought to be salary-dump throw-ins so the Kings could create enough salary-cap space to pursue free agents.

But the Sixers have said that they plan to keep the two veterans. They will join a crowded frontcourt group that includes draft picks Jahlil Okafor and Richaun Holmes along with Nerlens Noels, Joel Embiid, Furkan Aldemir and, at times, Jerami Grant. Embiid's availability has yet to be determined after he suffered a setback in the healing of his right foot.

Okafor and Noel are slated to be starters, assuming that Embiid is unable to play. If the 2014 draft pick does play, then he, Noel and Okafor could get most of the playing time. The Sixers consider them the cornerstones of the franchise.

"A wise guy said, 'It doesn't matter how you start, it's how you finish,' " Thompson said of his expected role. "I can be a stretch four and show you guys that I have a certain type of [shooting] range."

The 6-foot-11, 250-pounder thinks his athleticism could help when opposing teams go to smaller lineups. As Thompson sees it, the Sixers wouldn't be forced to have small forwards guard stretch forwards with him on the floor.

"Sometimes you have to adjust," he said. "For me, I'm all about certain opportunities and making it work. Not just be a starter, but come off the bench and be a sixth man and something like that. If it leads us to winning, I'm all about that, too."

The former standout at Lenape High and Rider University sees this trade as an opportunity to rejuvenate his career.

The 28-year-old's numbers declined during his seven seasons with the Kings. His averages of 6.1 points and 1.7 offensive rebounds and his 47.2 shooting percentage last season were all career lows. His 6.5 rebound average was the third lowest of his career.

Thompson pointed out that he took more shots and still shot a higher percentage early in his career.

"At the time, basketball was still fun," he said. "Guys were moving the ball. You've got certain guys who come into the organization, they are taking a lot of shots, a lot of [isolation plays]. The opportunities are not there. Then you have to put pressure on yourself to make every shot.

"So for me, it's not that I was taking the same shots and the points were down. Some of that was some of the main guys on the team wanted to have 20-20 games, pretty much have a double-double every game."

That's one of the reasons why he calls being traded to his hometown team a surreal moment. Still a diehard fan of the Eagles, Phillies and Flyers, Thompson is elated to play for a team he rooted for growing up.

He's also happy about the opportunity it could provide.