The 2015 NLL draft was held on Monday evening at the Toronto Rock Athletic Centre in Oakville. To nobody’s surprise, Lyle Thompson was chosen first overall by the Georgia Swarm.
With the first draft pick in their team’s history, the Swarm chose the youngest Thompson brother, who will be the fourth of four to play in the NLL, preceded by Jeremy (Saskatchewan), Jerome (Buffalo), and Miles (also Georgia). Thompson just finished his senior year at the University of Albany where he played for the Great Danes, scoring 400 points in his four years, making him the all-time leading scorer in NCAA D1 lacrosse. He was also a member of Team Iroquois which won silver at the 2015 World Indoor Lacrosse Championship in Syracuse this past weekend, and while his box experience is not as recent as his field, Thompson scored 14 goals and 16 assists and was named to the All-World team.
The Swarm held four picks in the first round and also took Jesse King (3rd), Chad Tutton (5th), and Randy Staats (6th). King just won a Mann Cup with the Victoria Shamrocks while Tutton played for the losing side from Peterborough. Staats was also on the Iroquois Team at the WILC and has spent the past two summers playing for the Six Nations Chiefs in the MSL, as one of the league’s best young players.
Thompson was thrilled to be picked by the Swarm, a team that already boasts his brother, plus several players he has grown up with.
“I think I’m more excited about the other pickups they had!” he said. “Offensively, the chemistry is going to be there, that’s going to be the easy part. Having Randy there, I just got done playing with him yesterday against Canada, Miles, Johnny Powless, Shayne Jackson, offensively we look really good and I’m just excited.”
Thompson grew up playing with Powless and Staats for Iroquois teams and he is excited the trio will be reunited in Georgia. He’s also happy to get the chance to play with his brother, and chuckled when he said it will make it easier on their parents in terms of visiting and deciding who to cheer for.
“Chemistry’s a huge thing in the game of lacrosse,” he said. “It’s a team sport and when it comes to the Georgia Swarm and what we just added to the team, the chemistry’s going to be there. I just got done playing for the Iroquois Nationals and me, Miles, and Randy were the right side and that’s going to be the right side for the Swarm and on the left side, I played with Johnny in the Iroquois and I’ve known Shayne Jackson since I was in high school. I played against him when he played for Whitby, and he went to school with my oldest brother. Chemistry’s not going to be a problem with this team. It think we’ll be set offensively.”
Thompson and Tutton both briefly suited up for the Florida Launch of the MLL this summer, so they are familiar with one another.
“I’ve never played with Jesse King, though,” Thompson said. “Although I am playing with him in a couple of weeks in Hawaii for a tournament. I’m excited to meet him and to really become a part of the Swarm organization.”
Thompson and his brothers are big names in the lacrosse world, as they run camps all over the North Eastern US for young kids to help develop their skills. They are also proud of their Iroquois heritage and do what they can to promote the game to other First Nations children.
Thompson is looking forward to using his influence in a new place to help bring new people to the game of lacrosse.
“You hear reporters talk about on and off the floor,” he said when asked what he can bring to the Swarm. “With me being a big name in lacrosse, I think I can help bring fans in, in a place where they’re just moving, down to Georgia.”
He said that his play will have to speak for itself to show those new fans what lacrosse is all about.
“On the floor is where I need to get it done. Box lacrosse is a little different than field but I think I’m capable of still putting balls in the net and still feeding the ball, still creating a lot of havoc for other teams. I’m confident in my abilities and I think I can still bring a lot to the table.”
Tutton, who played midfield at the University of North Carolina, spent the summer as a defenseman for the Peterborough Lakers, and will be counted on with the Swarm to be a versatile player on D as well as transition. The Swarm have Jordan MacIntosh, arguably the best transition player in the game, but lost Andrew Suitor and Brock Sorensen in the past few years. Tutton will help bring their transition game back up.
“I can bring my size, my defensive ability, as well as running the ball on transition,” Tutton said. “I’ll be a real team player and will do anything to coaches ask of me and work my tail off for the team. This feels awesome, it’s something I’ve been looking forward to my whole life and now it’s finally here. I didn’t care where I was going but it’s great to be in Georgia, they had a lot of great picks and I’ve got friends there so I’m really looking forward to it.”
Other picks by the Swarm include Peterborough’s Thomas Hogarth (second round, 20th overall), Michael Seidel (3rd round, 29th overall), Nick Ossello (fifth round, 43rd overall), and Rick Lewis (sixth round, 50th overall).
