Day Day Thomas may not be the favorite to land a spot on the Boston Celtics’ roster, but he’s getting a real shot to turn heads in Las Vegas.
The former University of Cincinnati guard is set to open Summer League action Friday night, and he arrives with a package that’s easy to notice: a memorable nickname, a useful skill set and enough production to make him worth watching.
The nickname is the first thing that sticks. Thomas goes by Day Day, though his real name is DaVeon Thomas. The nickname is simply the first syllable of his first name repeated.
He’s also got a path that suggests there’s something here. Thomas is from South Carolina, started his college career at Kilgore College in Texas and put up 19.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game in his final season there before moving on.
At Cincinnati, he spent three seasons with the Bearcats and appeared in 100 games. Over that stretch, he averaged 10.7 points, 3.2 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game, along with 1.5 steals per game.
The biggest question with Thomas is his 3-point shot, and the answer has gotten a lot better. He opened his Cincinnati career by hitting just 28.0% from deep. In 2024-25, he jumped to 40.2% on similar volume, then followed that with a bigger workload in 2025-26, when he made 72-of-189 3s for 38.1%.
That’s the swing skill for him. If Thomas can carry that shooting into the NBA, his defensive pressure and perimeter threat give him a legitimate chance to stick.
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