On Tuesday evening, Klay Thompson and the Golden State Warriors defeated the Dallas Mavericks 130-92 at Chase Center in San Francisco.
He netted 15 points on 6 of 12 shooting, including 3 of 5 from three-point range, in what was arguably his greatest performance since returning after a 30-month hiatus on January 6.
“I am just happy that I was able to uptick my minutes tonight,” Thompson said shortly after the game. “That was probably a season-high for me, 25 minutes. Get my good rest tomorrow, and I’m excited to play against the T-Wolves on Thursday.”
Thompson just had a run-through hours before Sunday’s game against the Utah Jazz and was planned on playing until Warriors Director of Sports Medicine and Performance Rick Celebrini noticed Thompson’s movement and urged otherwise.
Klay’s postgame comments about his injured knee were shared by The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, and the update was very favorable. Klay disclosed that he experienced minor edema in his knee due to hyperextension, but that he felt fine after playing 25 minutes against the Mavericks.
Klay Thompson has knee soreness. He is out tonight vs Jazz. Late scratch. "Day to day," Kerr says. Surgically repaired knee. "Nothing too concerning. Just part of the cautiousness," Kerr says.
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) January 23, 2022
His status was upgraded from questionable to available and started for Tuesday’s game against the Mavericks.
Fruitful comeback
Thompson underwent knee surgery in July 2019 to repair a torn ACL. Thompson damaged his Achilles while in rehab, necessitating surgery in November 2020. His on-court time was limited in the 941 days he was out before his emotional return two weeks ago.
He showed flashes of brilliance in the Golden State Warriors’ 130-92 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday at Chase Center, showcasing what coach Steve Kerr termed as “just playing a Klay Thompson game.”
Thompson scored 15 points while shooting 6 of 12 from the field and 3 of 5 from 3-point range to help the Warriors (35-13) win their third game in a row.
He accomplished this while playing a season-high 26 minutes only two days after missing Sunday’s game against Utah due to “a little soreness” in his left knee during pregame walk-throughs.
KT behind the back to a Wiggs and-1?!
Must see TV.
📺 @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/M5OcK7pQyG
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) January 26, 2022
Warriors’ defense during the game
The Warriors have progressed to 34-13 on the season and are the second seed in the Western Conference.
Since Draymond Green’s injury, Golden State has improved to 6-4 and recaptured the league lead in defensive rating (102.4 points allowed per 100 possessions).
The Warriors limited the Mavericks to 35.2 percent shooting, a season low. When the defense is on point, the Warriors thrive. They are 19-2 when holding their opponent to less than 100 points. They are 10-1 when an opponent shoots less than 40 percent from the field.
Steve Kerr’s side thrives off defense because of what they can accomplish offensively-easy buckets in transition that energize the offense even more.
“We played well at both ends and when you play well offensively, you tend to put your defense in a good position and vice versa,” Kerr stated.
Following a game in which he shot 0/7 from three, Klay recovered his stride against Dallas, converting on three of his five three-point tries. The Warriors will continue to prepare him for what they hope will be another NBA title run.