Derek Thompson changed numbers this season, switching from No. 5 to No. 2 -- which, frankly, is a pretty accurate illustration to a life flipped upside down.
鈥淚t was a long year,鈥� Thompson admitted.
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Thompson, a senior forward on the Bemidji State men鈥檚 basketball team and one of the program鈥檚 best players in recent memory, will remember the past 12 months not for the history he made on the court but for the trials he endured off of it.
On top of the anxiety brought on by the pandemic, Thompson unexpectedly lost his best friend and his father within the past year. Their respective deaths in June and November have understandably weighed mightily on Thompson, but basketball isn鈥檛 the primary outlet that鈥檚 allowed him to persevere.
鈥淚鈥檝e always believed in God, but especially now my faith has grown because of the way that I鈥檝e had to deal with this last year, going through these struggles,鈥� Thompson said. 鈥淚 know that I can鈥檛 do it alone and I really need to rely on him, not on something else.鈥�
Oftentimes, basketball players are defined as just that. Athletes can be restricted to the court, the field, the rink as their main source of identity. Not so with Thompson.
鈥淕od is No. 1 above everyone else,鈥� the Cold Spring native said. 鈥淲hat I鈥檓 called to do in life is to love everyone and spread his good news. Do my best to be the best Christian and all-around person that I can be.鈥�
All of that isn鈥檛 to say Thompson鈥檚 not a stud on the hardwood. Last year, he became just the second player in program history to hit 1,000 points as a junior. Now, he鈥檚 nearing a top-10 scoring career. He鈥檚 also just one of 10 Beavers to haul in 500 rebounds, and he鈥檚 climbing up that list, too.
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鈥淚 didn鈥檛 even know that I had 500 rebounds until like a couple days after. I don鈥檛 really check out social media too much,鈥� said Thompson, who often downplays his individual milestones. 鈥淚t鈥檚 cool to be a 1,000-point scorer and also get 500 rebounds, but I鈥檝e been starting for three, four years now. I should be reaching those numbers if I鈥檓 a solid player. It鈥檚 good to know that I鈥檝e had a big impact, and hopefully I continue to do so and improve even more.鈥�
He鈥檒l be back next year, too, using the NCAA鈥檚 coronavirus eligibility waiver to return for another season that he calls 鈥渁 win-win situation.鈥� He entered this weekend 168 rebounds shy of Steve Vogel鈥檚 all-time record (694) and 453 points away from Charles Hanks for second all-time in scoring (1,613), and both now become records within range.
He may not care about the numbers, but BSU will certainly benefit from his output for another season.
鈥淵es, he has gone through some amazing times, difficult times that I don鈥檛 think anyone would want to go through,鈥� Bemidji State head coach Mike Boschee said. 鈥淏ut to come back and give us what he鈥檚 given us, it鈥檚 a testament to who he is, the work ethic he puts in, his desire to be really good. It just shows. It shows every day.鈥�
A time to plant and a time to harvest
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The Thompson family attended Resurrection Lutheran Church in St. Joseph during Derek鈥檚 childhood. It鈥檚 there where, as Thompson puts it, God planted the verse Psalm 46:1 in his heart: 鈥淕od is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.鈥�
Just before Thanksgiving, his family held a funeral for Derek鈥檚 father, Richard, in the same church.
That service came just a few months after Thompson attended one for Kade Hart, his college teammate who died in June.
Ever since, Thompson and those closest to him have truly needed to harvest the fruits of the verse ingrained in his heart.
鈥淚鈥檝e had so many people reach out to me, and I know so many people are there for me,鈥� Thompson said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really good to know that everybody has my back, and people are praying for me all the time. I have people I can talk to whenever I need to. Especially my mom. My mom is one of my best friends.鈥�
His identity may not be basketball, but the sport has nonetheless played a big role in Thompson鈥檚 relationships. This year he traded his No. 5 jersey for a No. 2 uniform, which was Hart鈥檚 old number, after discussing it with Hart鈥檚 family.
鈥淓very time I look at my jersey and see Kade鈥檚 number, I definitely think about him,鈥� Thompson said. 鈥淪ometimes it feels weird when I look down at my chest and I have No. 2 on. It still doesn鈥檛 feel like I should be wearing that number. 鈥� But it gives me a little bit of extra motivation to keep moving forward and, in a sense, do it for him.鈥�
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Thompson鈥檚 phone doesn鈥檛 light up before games like it used to, either, but he鈥檚 shaped that pain into something with an eternal benefit.
鈥淣ot getting a text from my dad was really difficult,鈥� Thompson said. 鈥淏efore every game he would text me or say something. When my dad died, I grew especially closer to God than I ever have. That really has gotten me through dealing with that.鈥�
Thompson has plenty driving him forward. More than the aforementioned individual stats, he still wants to win a conference championship for the Beavers. Academically, he鈥檚 also working toward a Master of Business Administration degree, which he hopes to finish next year.
He doesn鈥檛 expect his life to go perfectly. And, frankly, it may be flipped upside down sometimes. But now more than ever, Thompson鈥檚 life is all about living out what he believes.
鈥淚鈥檓 relying on God to be my strength and refuge all the time,鈥� Thompson said. 鈥淚n life, we have troubles. But nothing can ever compare or take away the fact that Jesus Christ is our Savior. One day we鈥檒l live in paradise with him and I鈥檒l get to see my dad again.鈥�
