Warriors star Klay Thompson logged 40 minutes in the team’s game against the Hawks on Friday, a major accomplishment since recovering from a torn ACL and torn Achilles’ tendon. The 32-year-old finished with 37 points, seven rebounds and three assists in the loss, shooting 9-of-16 from deep.
“That’s a big win for me,” Thompson said on recording 40 minutes, as relayed by Kendra Andrews of ESPN.com. “I can’t remember the last time I played 40 minutes … a huge milestone for me.”
Head coach Steve Kerr also complimented Thompson after the contest, calling it his best outing since returning. Thompson’s previous season-high in minutes was 38 against San Antonio one week ago, while is next highest was just under 34 against Milwaukee on March 12.
“Rick (Celebrini) may not be (comfortable with it),” Kerr said, referring to the team’s director of sports medicine and performance (as shared by Anthony Slater of The Athletic). “I may have a text on my phone. But I thought it was Klay’s best game.”
Here are some other notes out of Golden State tonight:
- Kerr is hopeful that Andre Iguodala will return against the Grizzlies on Monday, Slater shares in a separate tweet. Iguodala has been dealing with a back injury and last played on February 7. He’s appeared in 26 games this season, averaging 4.1 points and 3.8 assists in 19.9 minutes per contest.
- Golden State started Jonathan Kuminga in place of Kevon Looney on Friday, as noted by Slater (Twitter link). This allowed Draymond Green to play center, pairing Looney with Otto Porter Jr. off the bench. The team used the same starting lineup for its game against the Wizards on Sunday.
- Kerr explained his rationale behind the lineup adjustment, noting how it’s important to settle on a lineup before the playoffs come. “We’re going to have a ton of flexibility these last eight games,” he said as part of a full quote, according to Andrews (Twitter link). “Without Steph, everything changes for us in terms of the domino effect of different rotations. I decided to separate Draymond and Loon for more spacing and more shooting on the floor at the same time.” Stephen Curry remains out due to a sprained ligament in his foot and is expected to return before the postseason.
The team lost but Klay was so happy about his 37 points. Disapponted and disgusted…. ONLY one stat matters and thats a W or L. The sooner Klay realizes this, the better it will be for W’s. Too many nba players nowadays worry about their personal stats rather than the team. Get the team out of the slump!
I will give Klay a bit of some slack, you know because it has only been roughly TWO YEARS since he’s last played.
Plus, since coming back, he’s struggled with his confidence, and any milestone that gets Klay excited ajd confident in himself again IS MOST DEFINITELY best for the team..
Yeah, he was focused on the minutes… not his stats…
If Klay played 40 minutes but scored only 10 points he would be pouting even if a team wins the game. :(
Bottom line is that team was winning every game before he came back, and he needs to figure out how he can contribute to the title run in any smallest way.
I totally agree that confident Klay is critical for team’s success! However, time is running out on this season and we need Klay to show his leadership and experience to guide this team through the rough stage. No title this year is a failure!
DAL needs to slow down a bit, bad for them to finish #3 seed as they would have to play a very tough series with DEN, which they probably would loose… but if they stick to the #4 seed they will have a very easy ride in the R1WC playing UTA, so not good for them to overtake GSW!