Over the past two seasons, Hofstra University put out two NBA players: Aaron Estrada and Tyler Thomas. This marks the first time since the NBA Summer League was invented in 2004 that two players from Hofstra have played simultaneously. The two-star guards played alongside one another for the Pride during the 2022-2023 season.
“[Estrada and Thomas] were both great teammates, but leadership-wise, they showed it more, rather than vocally,” said Hofstra head coach Speedy Claxton. “They were both great leaders on and off the court, guys followed their lead, and both were special players here.”
After the 2020-2021 season, Estrada transferred to Hofstra from the University of Oregon and lit up the arena. Throughout his two seasons with the Pride, he averaged 19.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists. Estrada was also named the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Player of the Year and received All-CAA First Team and All-Eastern College Athletic Conference First Team awards in both seasons at Hofstra.
The list of accolades seems endless for the guard, as he carried his team to back-to-back CAA Championship tournaments. Estrada also logged 1,219 career points, which is No. 26 in the program’s history.
After leaving Hofstra, Estrada took his talents to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where he averaged 13.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists in his lone season with the University of Alabama. Estrada’s talent was highlighted during the 2024 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament as he took a trip to the Final Four, where he and the Crimson Tide ultimately lost to the University of Connecticut 86-72.
The 23-year-old went undrafted in the 2024 NBA Draft but was signed to an Exhibit 10 deal by the Detroit Pistons on June 28.
Hofstra’s second star guard, Thomas, spent his first three years at Sacred Heart University before transferring to Hofstra ahead of the 2022-2023 season. Thomas came to Hofstra to be Robin to Estrada’s Batman, as the two guards etched their names into the Hofstra record books.
Thomas averaged 19.4 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists over his two years with the Pride. Thomas’ 1,320 career points rank as the No. 20 best in program history.
Thomas recorded some impressive games during the 2023-2024 season, as he put together a 19/10/10 triple-double against CAA opponent North Carolina A&T University on Feb. 10. He poured in a career-high 40 points against High Point University on Nov. 11, 2023. He put up a 32-point performance in the third round of the CAA Championship tournament to move onto the next round. He earned both First and Second Team honors throughout his tenure with the Pride.
The 25-year-old guard went undrafted in the 2024 NBA Draft but was added to the Chicago Bulls’ Summer League roster on Monday, July 1.
“They came in with aspirations to be professionals and you can tell from their work ethic that that’s what they were striving for,” Claxton said.
The two Hofstra alumni are accomplishing something no two players from Hofstra have ever accomplished at the same time. Justin Wright-Foreman was the last Hofstra star to make it to the NBA, where he was selected by the Utah Jazz 53rd overall in the 2019 NBA Draft.
When looking back on Coach Claxton’s time with Estrada and Thomas, he highlighted one specific memory that shined over the others.
“Winning that regular season championship, that was a special team, and they were a special backcourt,” Claxton said. “In my mind, they both should have been on the [All-CAA First Team], but that was a special year for us.”
Estrada and Thomas square off against one another on Tuesday, July 16, as the Pistons take on the Bulls in the NBA Summer League. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m.
Photo courtesy of Hofstra Athletics/Evan Bernstein
