How Thompson made his case for team MVP
Editor’s note: The Chronicle is reviewing the season of each player after the Warriors’ second straight championship run.
In Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Klay Thompson sustained a high left ankle sprain. It was the type of injury that would have sidelined most players weeks.
But there Thompson was, playing the final three games of Golden State’s Finals sweep of Cleveland on a severely swollen ankle. After Game 4’s championship-clinching win, Warriors center David West put Thompson’s performance in perspective, telling reporters that what Thompson did “was unbelievable, the fact that he played after his Game 1 injury. Everyone else would have been done.”
It came as no surprise to those who know Thompson. A no-maintenance All-Star, he
is a fierce competitor who has no use for fame or attention. What makes Thompson special is how little energy and time he requires to accomplish the remarkable.
Unlike Stephen Curry, who uses seemingly his entire body to hoist three-point shots, Thompson is a jumpshooting metronome: plant, catch, release. And in addition to being one of the best marksmen in NBA history, he is an elite perimeter defender who makes life difficult for some of the league’s premier scorers.
Though Curry, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green get more accolades, a case can be made that Thompson was Golden State’s MVP this past season.
He only narrowly missed his stated goal of making the 50-40-90 club, finishing the regular season 48.8 percent from the field, 44 percent from three-point range and 83.7 percent from the foul line. More than 56 percent of his shots didn’t involve a dribble, and less than a third of them required him to hold the ball for at least two seconds, according to NBA.com.
Thompson’s three-point percentage was tied for third in the league. For the third time in four seasons, he led the NBA in catch-and-shoot points per game.
In a season filled with injuries to key players, Thompson was a steadying force. He didn’t miss a game because of injury until he was sidelined for eight in March with a fractured right thumb. With Curry out for the first round of the playoffs against San Antonio, Thompson averaged 22.6 points on 52.9 percent shooting (51.6 percent from three-point range).
Three days after he suffered that ankle sprain in Game 1 of the Finals, he needed only 13 shots to score 20 points in Game 2. Over the final two games, even as he struggled with his shot, Thompson played reliable defense.
It all underscored why Steve Kerr has long called Thompson “a machine.” Offseason outlook: Warriors majority owner Joe Lacob has said that he plans to offer Thompson, who is entering the fourth year of a four-year, $70 million deal, a new contract this summer.
However, odds are that Thompson will prefer to wait until free agency. The $102 million for which Thompson could be extended is $85 million less than the maximum for which he could sign with Golden State as a free agent.