Thompson has come under fire for his form through two games, with some pundits even questioning his position in the Warriors’ best lineup. That included Bill Simmons who put it squarely on the agenda in his latest podcast episode
"“Klay Thompson…that is going to be a big decision for Kerr in one of these games, where I don’t think he’s one of their best five players in this series. I think in a lot of ways he helps the Celtics more than the Warriors if he feels like 2016 Klay when he’s not…they’re going to have a situation where there’s going to be a game in Boston where it might not make sense to have him out there”."
But the Warriors simply need a productive Klay Thompson in order to win the NBA championship. The 32-year-old has built up enough trust within Kerr and the organization that they’ll let him fight through this mini-slump. Here’s why he’s earned that –
Thompson’s playoff record
Thompson has built up an imposing playoff record as part of the Warriors’ dynasty core. History suggests that the Warriors will get at least one big scoring game from him, if not multiple. He’s recorded at least one 30+ point game in eight of his last 12 playoff series, while he’s also recorded multiple 25+ point games in 10 of his last 19 series.
Put simply, there’s more chance that Thompson wins the Warriors one of these Finals games than him remaining cold for the entire series. Rightly or wrongly, Kerr and the franchise will bank on him getting hot at some point.
Thompson’s a tough shot-maker
Sure, the Warriors would like to get Thompson a lot more open looks than what he’s getting against the Celtics at present. But even if he doesn’t, you’d still expect him to start making a lot more than the 14.3% he’s currently shooting on tightly contested shots.
He shot 50% on tightly contested shots against the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals, while he also shot 56.7% on those attempts against the Nuggets to start the playoffs. When he finds a shooting rhythm and groove, teams turn to pray that he misses rather than their defense having any great impact.
Additionally, his sheer threat as a shooter means the Celtics will continue to guard him diligently regardless of whether he’s making shots or not. Like Stephen Curry, Thompson’s perimeter threat opens up an invaluable amount of offensive spacing for his teammates to thrive.
Thompson’s improvement later in series
We all know that game six Klay has been etched into NBA folklore, but his improvement as series’ progress is quite staggering for someone coming off two major leg injuries. Here are his scoring averages in these playoffs to date –
Games 1 and 2 – 15.37
Games 3 and 4 – 20.66
Games 5 and 6 – 24
If those trends continue, then Warriors fans can expect that he’s played his worst two games of the Finals and that it’s only upwards from here.
It’s quickly forgotten that Thompson went for 30 points and eight three-pointers to close out the Mavericks just three games ago. Boston’s defense is a whole new challenge, but counting out a proven playoff performer after two games seems slightly premature.