No Buckeye fan will be surprised to hear how the point guard did to begin his NBA career.
Former Ohio State standout Bruce Thornton wasted no time announcing himself in the NBA, even before his rookie season began. The No. 31 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, who was quickly traded from the New York Knicks to the Houston Rockets, delivered one of the most productive individual runs at the 2026 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, leading Houston to the semifinals before the team's run ended against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Thornton opened his professional career in spectacular fashion on July 10 against the Denver Nuggets, dropping 27 points — the most ever by a Rockets rookie in a Summer League debut. He shot 7-of-18 from the field and 3-of-8 from three, going a perfect 7-for-7 at the free-throw line. He added three rebounds, three assists and three steals in a 97-86 Houston win. He finished with a game-high plus-20.
The next night against the Toronto Raptors, scoring efficiency dipped as Thornton went just 6-of-17 from the floor. However, the point guard showcased the full two-way profile that made him a fan favorite in Columbus. He finished with 17 points, six rebounds, six assists and a game-high five steals, flirting with a rare 5-by-5 stat line in a 102-89 loss.
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During the third game of the Summer League, a 90-45 win by the Rockets over the Philadelphia 76ers on July 14, Thornton delivered the cleanest performance of the week. Ohio State's all-time leading scorer needed just nine shot attempts to score 18 points, going 5-of-9 from the field in 26 minutes while adding two rebounds, four assists and two steals, and committing only one foul — his most efficient outing of the five games in Las Vegas.
Thornton kept the momentum rolling against the Brooklyn Nets, pouring in a game-high 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 50 percent from three, while outplaying Brooklyn's touted backcourt duo of Egor Demin and No. 6 overall pick Mikel Brown Jr. He added four rebounds, two assists and two steals as Houston cruised to a 100-83 win.
Through those first four games, Thornton averaged 21.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and three steals per game — numbers that propelled the Rockets into the Summer League semifinals as one of the tournament's top seeds.
The run came to an end in the semifinal against Memphis, where Thornton had an off night shooting. He finished with just eight points on 2-of-12 shooting, though he stuffed the stat sheet elsewhere with eight rebounds, seven assists and a steal in 31 minutes, as the Rockets fell, 101-90.
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Even with the disappointing finish, Thornton, who signed a four-year contract with the Rockets, closed out his Summer League debut averaging more than 18 points per game and posting strong all-around numbers on both ends — a showing that should put pressure on a crowded Houston backcourt that already includes Fred VanVleet and newly signed Marcus Smart. For the No. 31 overall pick, it's about as strong an introduction as anyone could have drawn up.