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OAKLAND -– Just as the Splash Brothers walked off the court, Klay Thompson had something poignant to tell Stephen Curry about the Warriors’ 122-95 victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday at Oracle Arena.
“When’s the last time we blew somebody out?” Thompson asked. “2016?”
It has been much more recent. The Warriors have beaten opponents by at least 20 points in seven different games this season, the most recent including a 23-point win over Phoenix on New Year’s Eve. The Warriors also had a season-best 28-point blowout over Portland (Nov. 27) and when they last played the Knicks (Oct. 26) at Madison Square Garden.
Considering the Warriors’ relatively recent struggles, it might be understandable that Thompson has not felt the team’s recent dominance since setting the NBA record for most regular-season wins (73). The Warriors had lost marquee games recently against the Los Angeles Lakers, Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets. So the Warriors (27-14) needed a an breezy win against a Knicks team (10-30) that lost nine of their last 11 games and played their past five games on the road.
“Winning big, big margins — never had done it as much as we should this season,” Thompson said. “At the halfway point, we’re in a very good position. We’re on pace for 54 wins. I think that will increase.”
Klay had a Klay game
The Warriors made that happen because Thompson shot at his best. He posted a team-high 43 points while shooting 18-of-29 from the field and 7-of-16 from the perimeter, marking his his second 40-point game that coincided with setting an NBA record in 3-pointers made in a game (14) against Chicago on Nov. 29.
Beyond those two games, Thompson has not produced many highlights this season. In the past five games though, Thompson has averaged 27.2 points while going 55.1 percent from the field and 51.3 percent from 3-point range.
Thompson led the way with 43 points while shooting 18-of-29 from the field and 7-of-16 from 3-point range. Warriors forward Kevin Durant added 24 points on a 7-of-14 mark from the field along with six assists and six rebounds. Warriors guard Stephen Curry (14 points on 5-of-19 shooting) and Draymond Green (two points on 1-of-5 shooting) had off nights, but the Warriors’ other All-Stars played well enough to make that a non issue. The Warriors also had 46 points in the paint.
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“It’s good to see Klay knocking down shots, but nobody is worried about him,” said Warriors forward Kevin Durant, who added 24 points on a 7-of-14 clip. “He’s Klay Thompson. He can get it going at any time. I just want him to keep shooting and keep being aggressive like he always does. It’s not like we’re looking at his hand and saying, ‘Welcome back, we miss you.’”
The comment drew laughs for obvious reasons. Thompson made a late-game 3-pointer in a win in Portland on Nov. 29 en route to a 32-point performance on 12-of-21 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc. As Thompson walked toward a team huddle, he looked at his right hand and said, “I missed you.”
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“I felt like I should’ve had 10 3’s, but you never let missed shots affect you,” Thompson said. “Just keep being aggressive. Fortunately, I didn’t have very many assists. But it happens.”
Yeah, about that. Thompson had zero assists. That doesn’t exactly jive with the Warriors’ belief in ball movement. But that’s okay. Curry didn’t shoot well (14 points on 5-of-19 shooting). But he made up for that with 14 assists. Though Draymond Green only had two points on 1-of-5 shooting, he added 10 assists. The Warriors finished with 36 assists.
That gave Thompson the platform to let the shots fly. Most of them went into the basket. Thompson chalked his strong shooting to this: “you get a few easy looks early and a couple at the rim, you’re already in a good rhythm.”
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Will this be the new trend?
“I love this new narrative that he’s back,” Curry said, laughing. “That’s what Klay does. I know his numbers aren’t the way he wants them to be this year. It’s not a surprise.”
Instead, it became more of a surprise that Thompson struggled shooting the ball in the first place. He opened the first seven games of the season shooting a combined 39.6 percent from the field and 13.9 percent from 3-point range. Until his breakout game in Portland, Thompson went through a nine-game stretch averaging a combined 35.8 percent clip from the field and 30 percent mark from the perimeter.
That hardly matches Thompson’s season average in shooting percentage (45.7 percent) and perimeter shooting (41.7 percent).
And yet…
“Every day I feel like I’m due for one of these kind of games, believe it or not,” Thompson said. “To me, it wasn’t that big of a deal not to hit my career mark in field-goal percentage, whatever it was. I know how long the season is. I’ve been here for eight years now. I know there’s going to be some ups and downs. You want to be at your best when your best is needed.”
With Thompson being currently at his best, the Warriors tried making very little of it. Kerr mused, “I didn’t go in the locker room and say, ‘Great job, Klay.’” During portions of Thompson’s shooting slump, the Warriors made a concerted effort in feeding him the ball and finding him easy looks.
Against the Knicks, though, the Warriors did not need to do much to get Thompson going. He did that himself.
“It’s not surprising Klay can shoot. He’s confident in himself and that never wavers,” Curry said. “It’s just funny with the ips and downs and the spotlight on him. It’s a good thing it’s Klay Thompson having to deal with that. He’s the best at it.”
The Warriors could afford to rest their All-Stars in the fourth quarter
For the first time in a little less than a month, the Warriors did not have to weigh at what point should Curry rest and play in the fourth quarter with his new staggered role. With the Warriors’ easy win, Kerr sat Durant for the entire fourth quarter and his three other All-Stars for the final 5:33.
Kerr maintained that’s “not really something I’m thinking about,” adding that he’s “more interested in the quality of our play.” Durant added, “we’re all young. We can handle it.
Still, Thompson (33 minutes), Green (33 minutes), Curry (31 minutes) and Durant (30 minutes) played substantially fewer minutes in the Warriors’ recently close games. Consider the minutes for Curry (40), Durant (42), Thompson (43) and Green (37) in the Warriors’ overtime loss to Houston. Or the minutes for Curry (38, including entire fourth quarter) and Durant (39) in the Warriors’ win over Sacramento.
The Warriors normally play their All-Stars between 32-36 minutes per night to ensure they stay fresh through the regular season. And what better time to return those ranges with an optional day on Wednesday, a practice on Thursday and presumably another easy home game against Chicago on Friday. The Warriors then have a two-game, three-day trip in Dallas (Sunday) and Denver (Tuesday).
“It helps,” Curry said. “Those are type of nights where you keep the minutes down, especially with this week and the way games are spaced out and not laying into a Friday and starting on another road trip. Hopefully we can take advantage of that and be fresh on Friday and take care of business.”
Steve Kerr relayed a funny Charles Barkley quote
The Warriors’ coach found another way to bring perspective on the team’s season-long challenge with fighting complacency and absorbing everyone’s best effort and scouting report.
Kerr remembered when he worked as a TNT analyst and called a Knicks game with play-by-play announcer Marv Albert and analyst Charles Barkley. Then, the Knicks were in playoff contention and Carmelo Anthony garnered regular-season MVP consideration.
“Marv said, ‘Charles, the Knicks seemed to really have a strong team ,but occasionally a certain lethargy sets in,” Kerr said. “Charles goes, ‘Marv, I don’t know what ‘lethargy’ means. But if it means they suck, I agree with you.’ I don’t know why. That just flashed into my head.”
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