Amick: Thompson confidently steps into Warriors spotlight,
Just before Klay Thompson headed to the Oracle Arena media room to discuss his latest playoff feat, a 37-point outing against the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday in which he became the first player in NBA history to hit seven or more three-pointers in three consecutive postseason games, the Golden State Warriors’ other Splash Brother saw something even more rare.
A Stephen Curry miss — from point-blank range.
The injured MVP was sitting at his locker when it happened, chatting with Thompson about how the Warriors dominated yet again without him in a 118-106 win that put them up 1-0 in the Western Conference semifinals. Sporting black street clothes and a carefree smile, he fired an empty sports drink bottle toward the nearby trash can and … brick.
Maybe they don’t need this guy after all. At least not in this round.
When Curry went down in Houston on April 24, you never would have guessed that the Warriors’ prospects for a title defense would be so promising one week later.
A second-round matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers was still in play then, as the basketball world didn’t learn until two days later that Chris Paul ( broken hand) and Blake Griffin (thigh tendon tear) were out for the postseason. Enter a Blazers team that is a classic happy-to-be-here group, having lost four of five starters last offseason and overachieved to even get to this point, and the Warriors’ fortunes had taken a turn for the better just when it seemed like they couldn’t get any worse.
From then until now — half- time of Game 4 against the Houston Rockets all the way through Sunday — the Warriors have outscored the Rockets and the Blazers by a combined 82 points (307 to 225) while Curry cheers with all the spirit of a mascot from the bench.
The right medial collateral ligament sprain he suffered in Game 4 against Houston isn’t as bad as feared, either, as he hinted to ESPN’s Lisa Salters during an ingame interview that he could be back for Game 3 against Portland. What’s more, the beauty of Curry’s absence is that, with the spotlight having shifted, it has forced us to appreciate Thompson’s special talent.
Amid all the Curry madness, it’s often forgotten that some wondered whether he was the best player on his team just two summers ago. During Team USA’s gold medal run in the FIBA World Cup in Spain, the combination of Thompson’s shooting and relentless defense was enough to make it a conversation. That same summer, even the Warriors were guilty of not fully knowing what they had.
As has been well-chronicled, they gave serious thought to trading Thompson to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a deal that would have landed them Kevin Love. They ultimately declined, in large part because of concerns about what it would do to their defense. From owner Joe Lacob on down, they’ve been reminded ever since why it was such a wise move to keep him.
“Not many guys in the league who could chase Damian Lillard around for 37 minutes and score 37 points, too,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “Klay is a tremendous two-way player, and that was really an amazing night for him just in terms of his allaround play. … That’s a big burden to have to play both ways like that. He was awesome.”
Thompson not only led a highpowered offensive effort but also spent 37 minutes smothering one of the game’s best point guards in Lillard (8-for-26 shooting for 30 points and a -19 plus-minus rating). He called Lillard the Blazers’ “head of the snake” afterward — as good a clue as any that there will be more where this came from in the coming games. On the other end, he did the kind of Curry impression that few, if any, other shooters could pull off.
A reporter noted afterward that Thompson had been practicing his deep threes of late, backing up near the logo at the practice facility in the same kind of way that Curry has for so long. Thompson, whose seeminglyendless swagger is such a unique juxtaposition with his desire to avoid the limelight, grinned when asked about it.
“I’ve seen Steph do (that shot) a lot, so I’m just trying to be like him,” he said. “Those are shots that you don’t really want to take that much during the game, but if you make five or six in a row and you feel your guy is off you …”
Fire away. With or without Curry, the Warriors just can’t seem to miss.