Early in the NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics, Klay Thompson was playing poorly, and he simply didn’t look like his old self prior to his ACL and Achilles injuries.
The Warriors fell behind 2-1 in the series, and it was clear that they needed Thompson to start consistently knocking down shots if they were to get back in the series.
Well, it has happened.
He is not only starting to consistently knock down shots, but he is consistently knocking down shots of the contested type.
That is what Thompson did several years ago when the Warriors won three championships in a span of four years and reached the Finals five straight times.
Now that Thompson seems to have gotten his groove back, the Warriors are one win away from yet another world title.
This Season Has Been A Rediscovery Process For Klay
In the 2019 Finals, Thompson tore his ACL, causing him to miss the entire 2019-20 season.
Then, just prior to the following campaign, he tore his Achilles, forcing him to start the rehab process all over again.
Just one injury of that sort is enough to all but end an athlete’s career, and there is lots of precedent for that.
The five-time All-Star finally returned to game action on January 9 versus the Cleveland Cavaliers.
For weeks and weeks, he would have good games interspersed within bunches of bad or mediocre outings, and it was clear it would take him time to get his sea legs back.
Some speculated it wouldn’t be until next season that fans would see the Thompson of old.
But he ended the regular season on a huge surge, and although he has been up and down a bit in the playoffs, he has come through for the Warriors when they’ve needed him to.
Now, he is stepping it up on the game’s biggest stage.
He had 18 points while hitting 4-of-10 from 3-point range in Golden State’s big Game 4 victory, and on Monday, he had 21 points on 7-of-14 overall shooting and 5-of-11 from downtown as his team won again by 10 points.
Klay was a bucket in Game 5 and now the @warriors are 1 win away from a ring!@KlayThompson: 21 PTS, 2 STL, 5 3PM
Game 6: Thu. 9:00pm/et on ABC pic.twitter.com/70erGXdW6f
— NBA (@NBA) June 14, 2022
With Stephen Curry going just 7-of-22 from the field, the Warriors needed every bit of what Thompson gave them in Game 5.
The Warriors Will Need “Game 6 Klay Thompson” To Wrap Up Another Title
Although the Celtics looked somewhat drained down the stretch of the past two games, they will not go out lightly, especially with Game 6 to be played back in Massachusetts on the vaunted parquet floor.
The Warriors and their fans should expect Boston to come out like a pack of wounded animals in Game 6, and it may take their best effort of the series to bring home the Larry O’Brien trophy.
In the past two rounds of the playoffs, that’s exactly what Thompson gave them when they closed out their opponents.
In Game 6 of the second round versus the Memphis Grizzlies, he had 30 points while going 8-of-14 from downtown, and in the next round he dropped 32 points and eight 3-pointers versus the Dallas Mavericks in Game 6.
Those two performances have led to the meme of “Game 6 Klay Thompson.”
Klay Thompson last 3 games:
21.3 PPG
41.2 3P% on 11.3 attemptsGame 6 Klay next. pic.twitter.com/LB71m1M1lS
— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 14, 2022
That’s the Thompson Golden State will need in this Game 6, or at least in Game 7 (if necessary) to claim its fourth world championship since he joined the team.
NEXT: Andrew Wiggins Has Been The X-Factor For The Warriors