Canadian Tristan Thompson takes title trophy to Tim Hortons (pic)
Tristan Thompson is a proud Canadian, so when it was his turn to spend his week with the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy, the Cleveland Cavaliers star knew what to do. He of course took the trophy back for a victory tour of his hometown of Toronto. And then he did what any sensible Canadian would do: He paid a visit to Tim Hortons.
I saw Sidney Crosby brought the Stanley Cup to @timhortons so only right I brought Larry!! pic.twitter.com/Rac0JT9KcB
— Tristan Thompson (@RealTristan13) August 26, 2016
Thompson of course made sure to mention that he was following in the footsteps of fellow Canadian Sidney Crosby, who brought Lord Stanley’s Cup to Tim Hortons after leading the Pittsburgh Penguins to a title earlier this summer.
Even a @TimHortons morning routine doesn’t change on a day with the #StanleyCup. pic.twitter.com/H82Cw2nRlO
— #WCH2016 (@NHL) July 15, 2016
Thompson also paid a visit to the top floor of CN Tower.
I get a ring and I bring it home like I'm Cory Joe @cntower pic.twitter.com/K5AOlZ9Pfx
— Tristan Thompson (@RealTristan13) August 25, 2016
Thompson’s whirlwind tour of his old stomping grounds continued, with perhaps the highlight being a visit to Brampton, where he briefly played high school basketball at St. Marguerite d’Youville Secondary School.
Tristan Thompson’s basketball life comes full circle with high school visit https://t.co/tVKXYnuE0B #basketball #hoops
— Toronto Star Sports (@StarSports) August 26, 2016
Thompson ultimately transferred to Saint Benedict’s Preparatory School in Newark, N.J. as a sophomore. But the love is still felt for him in Brampton, as his No. 13 jersey was retired on Friday by St. Marguerite d’Youville.
DY retires Tristan Thompson's number pic.twitter.com/w3j752W5yB
— d'Youville Panthers (@dYathletics) August 26, 2016
Thompson also received a key to the city of Brandon Councillor Gurpreet Dhillon.
NBA Champ @RealTristan13 gets key to the city in hometown #Brampton today pic.twitter.com/a9J2h5rBFU
— Canada Basketball (@CanBball) August 26, 2016
As noted by Cleveland.com’s Joe Vardon, Thompson became just the sixth Canadian-born player to win an NBA championship after the Cavaliers crawled out of 3-1 series deficit to beat the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. He joins Mike Smrek, Bill Wennington, Rick Fox, Joel Anthony and Cory Joseph.
In other words, for Thompson, it felt pretty great to be a Canadian. But odds are he feels that way every day anyway.