PORTLAND — Even in in complete frustration over his crunch time benching in Phoenix, Klay Thompson couldn’t ignore the truth: His bad shot choices made him a liability with the game on the line.
That day was the first time Thompson sat out for a deciding stretch in the fourth quarter, coach Steve Kerr opting to play rookie Brandin Podziemski in his place. Since then, Thompson has been on a mission to stay off that bench.
Heading into Sunday’s game in Portland, Thompson had 54 points over the Warriors’ two games against the Los Angeles Clippers and Brooklyn Nets. He’s 11-for-21 from 3 over that span, not forcing heat checks in transition or chucking early in the shot clock as he was previously.
His 30 points in a loss to the Clippers was a season high; he strung together 24 points in a win against the Nets in chorus with a Steph Curry fourth-quarter flurry that turned back the clock to the Splash Brothers heyday. That includes some quintessentially-Klay off-balance and lightening-quick shots that were, more importantly, interspersed with a few extra passes with a man on him to the open space. In both games, Thompson was back on the court in closing minutes.
“It wasn’t just the shot making, he made six, seven passes to (Kevon Looney) diving and Dario (Saric) popping,” coach Steve Kerr said in Los Angeles. “He shot the shots he should shoot and he passed when he should pass. He looked like himself, and he got hot and hit a couple crazy shots. That’s who he’s been. The key when watching Klay is, is he taking shots and moving the ball when people are open? That’s what I saw all night long.”
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Notes
For a third straight game, the Warriors rolled with a starting five of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Brandin Podziemski, Jonathan Kuminga and Kevon Looney.
Curry is tweaking his pre-game warm-up from his typical time slot 75 minutes before tipoff. He went through his 15-minute routine a few hours before Saturday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets and a at an earlier time before their game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday.
