Thompson adds another chapter to Game 6 legacy
SAN FRANCISCO >> Less than three minutes remained, and all the Warriors needed to put the Grizzlies away was one shot from one of their prolific scorers. When Klay Thompson rose up and hit a 3-pointer, his eighth of the game, the shot sent Chase Center into a frenzy.
Thompson ran to the baseline to celebrate with fans, holding up five fingers on one hand and one finger on the other, beating his chest. “Game 6 Klay” had returned, and he wanted everyone to know it.
Fighting for their playoff lives, the Memphis Grizzlies had answered every Warriors' run Friday night. In the final minutes, the Warriors got a three from Andrew Wiggins, three more from Stephen Curry, and a slew of rebounds from Kevon Looney.
But it was Thompson's 3-pointer with 2:58 left that stood as the cherry on top. It increased the Warriors' lead to 105-92 and capped a 30-point performance that was the difference between another four-hour flight to Memphis for Game 7 and a 110-96 series-clinching victory.
“It's just something that comes naturally,” Thompson said. “I don't go to sleep last night thinking of scoring 30 or shooting the ball well. I was just thinking about how far I've come and how grateful I am to have another close-out game at Chase Center.”
Thompson's nickname was born in Game 6 of the 2016 Western Conference finals when, with the Warriors facing elimination in Oklahoma City. he scored 41 points on a playoff-record 11 three-pointers to force a seventh game.
In Game 6 of the Western Conference finals against Houston in 2018, he scored 35 points. In Game 6 of the NBA Finals in 2019, he scored 30 points, including the two free throws he drained with a torn ACL.
Curry has shared the floor with Thompson for every “Game 6 Klay” moment, from the highs of the first to the devastation of his last. After a twoyear hiatus, the feeling was the same.
“From the first shot he hit, it was like -- this is what he's been looking forward to since he got hurt back in the 2019 Finals,” Curry said. “It's a different joy. It's a different energy.”
From the tip, Thompson kept a
spark going for an offense struggling to find its stride. He hit his first 3-pointer on his first attempt, then his second just a minute later. The Warriors clinging to a slim lead at half, hope lay in Thompson's consistency. He had 17 points and five 3-pointers.
The Thompson who pressed in search to get back to where he was pre-injury seemed relieved of those mental cobwebs, thriving under the Game 6 pressure like clockwork. For Draymond Green, Thompson's eight rebounds and three blocked shots were “Game 6 Klay,” too.
“I tell y'all all the time, (he's) one of the toughest guys and most competitive guys I've ever played with -no, probably the toughest and most competitive player I've ever played
with, and it showed up tonight,” Green said.
For Thompson, this Game 6 moment felt a little different than the others. All season he has reflected on how two seasons rehabbing two injuries changed his perspective. Outwardly, he's more appreciative that he can put on these otherworldly performances, even if he still can't explain them.
“It felt better,” Thompson said of his latest Game 6 moment. “Honestly, especially the perspective I've gained from the injuries I've had -- to be able to compete at the highest level and be one of the final four teams, it's a feeling that's hard to describe.
“It's truly amazing and it just inspires me to keep going because I think I still have great basketball ahead of me.”