Isaiah Thomas Keeps a Chip on his Shoulder

Isaiah Thomas may not need extra motivation for greatness but he has always been walking around with a chip on his shoulder. His height alone certainly gives him an extra edge. Simply making the NBA while standing at 5’9 is a herculean task, but to be as great of a scorer as Thomas is is truly remarkable.

Darren Hartwell of NESN discusses these comments made by Thomas:

"I still feel underrated, no doubt about it […] I’ve always felt that way, but I’m going to earn my respect no matter what. I work extremely hard and I don’t want to be given anything. I want to earn it and get that respect from people […] When you work hard on your craft — when you work as hard as the stars do — that’s how you earn people’s respect. Winning obviously takes care of everything too, and I think I did gain more respect from being on a playoff team. I just want to build on that and show the world that I’m one of the best players in the NBA"

Thomas is on a mission to not only prove those doubters wrong but he wants to prove all the front offices in the NBA wrong. Thomas was once Mr. Irrelevant as he was the final player selected out of his draft. A lot of people have overlooked Thomas and it will continue to motivate him throughout his career.

The best part is that Thomas does not let it cloud his perspective. Thomas blew away anyone else on the Celtics with 19 points per game. He sparked a late season run that ended in the postseason and not only did he do it coming off the bench, but he was not even recognized with the 6th man of the year award.

Apr 21, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Boston Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas (4) shoots against Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) in the third quarter in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

In an NBA that is filled with some of the biggest egos in the NBA, Thomas has always expressed his willingness to sacrifice. Thomas has done more than enough to earn a starting position but he was publicly talked about how he will continue to accept a bench role. Obviously, Thomas would prefer to be in the starting lineup but he believes in what the Celtics are doing.

Thomas realizes that his young teammates and Brad Stevens have an opportunity to do something special and he will not let his pride get in the way of being successful, even if that pride has been fuelled by incredible adversity.

Thomas is always going to be the shortest player on the court. He is always going to live with the fact that he was the final player selected in his draft and now even more fuel will be added to the fire as he comes off the bench for the Boston Celtics.

Isaiah Thomas is one of the most important players on the Celtics and he realizes that the best way for him to prove all the doubters wrong is to be a part of something special with the greatest franchise in the history of the NBA.

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