The Golden State Warriors are one of the top teams in the NBA thus far in the 2021-22 season, despite the several absences of their second-best talent, Klay Thompson, a former NBA All-Star.
Thompson is gradually recovering his footing after being sidelined for two and a half years with injury problems, and he is also steadily turning back into one of the game’s top shooters and defenders.
On Tuesday night, his shooting skill was on full display when he hit a shot 1.3 seconds before the halftime buzzer during a match with the Detroit Pistons, in which the Warriors clinched a 102-86 win.
Thompson slowly back on his feet
Klay Thompson has not shot higher than 40 percent from the floor in a single game since making his debut for the Golden State Warriors against Cleveland on January 9. Thompson had his most effective shooting game of the season against the Pistons, going 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) from the field at Chase Center on Tuesday.
He also had a hot streak near the end of the second quarter, hitting four field goals (10 points) in a five-minute span to wrap out the half for the Golden State Warriors.
Thompson headed the Warriors with 21 points on 6-of-13 shooting, with 3-of-8 from the three-point line. He led the club in scoring for the first time since hitting 30 points in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals, the game in which he broke his ACL. It was also his highest-scoring effort in his comeback, as well as his best in terms of field goal percentage (46.2 percent ).
Introducing the next TikTok dance 😂 pic.twitter.com/sRpMleeHqc
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) January 19, 2022
He didn’t appear concerned when asked about his shooting woes in his comeback to the NBA as he believes in himself and his capabilities, in spite of the missed shots.
“I don’t care if I miss 100 shots in a row. I’m never going to stop shooting the ball. I love it too much and I work too hard not to,” he told the media shortly after the game with the Pistols.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr gave an update regarding Thompson’s recovery in a statement. “He’s getting his legs underneath him, for sure. He’s looking better and better, and his wind and conditioning has improved,” he said.
Most of his misses have been low, but the Warriors anticipate those shots to return as his legs get back underneath him, as Kerr claims.
Previously, the Warriors didn’t require Thompson to be a facilitator because he was playing with Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry, according to Kerr. However, it is something that this current lineup should benefit from.
Aside from Thompson’s strongest individual performance since his comeback more than a week ago, the club believes it was the most unified it has performed as a unit – notably the way Thompson and Curry functioned together.
Curry concluded with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, notably 4-of-7 from beyond the arc, evoking memories of the Splash Brothers’ days at Oakland’s Oracle Arena.
Tuesday’s victory was the first sign for the Warriors that their perseverance has paid off thus far. But more is required as they wait for at least two weeks for Draymond Green to recover from a disk problem in his lower back, as well as for Andre Iguodala to rejoin after sitting out against the Pistons.
Leading the way in the @warriors win, Klay Thompson went off for 17 PTS in the first half on his way to a season-high 21 PTS! 💧 pic.twitter.com/EBufdpSX2e
— NBA (@NBA) January 19, 2022