Klay Thompson comes off the bench for first time since his rookie year, says "I have to let my ego go"
NBA
Tonight, head coach Steve Kerr switched things up by bringing 5-time All-Star Klay Thompson off the bench. This was the sharpshooters first time coming off the bench since his rookie season. However, that didn't stop the 4-time champion from impacting the game, as he scored his season-high while leading the Warriors to a 140-137 down to the wire victory over the Utah Jazz at Delta Center.
Golden State lost a tough matchup to the Los Angeles Clippers last night and came into tonight's game with a sense of urgency to pick up a win heading into All-Star weekend. They have struggled for most of the year but will hope to turn things around following the break.
In tonight's contest, Klay Thompson hit 7 threes and scored a total of 35 points. He was absolutely on fire tonight despite having a tough shooting season. Stephen Curry had 16 points and 10 assists while Draymond Green had an all-around night, finishing with 23 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals, and 2 blocks. Andrew Wiggins recorded 19 points and 7 rebounds.
For Utah, Collin Sexton had himself a night, scoring 35 points to go along with his 9 assists. Keyontae George was on fire, scoring 33 points and hitting 9 three pointers. Lauri Markkanen had 20 points and 14 rebounds while John Collins contributed 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Steve Kerr spoke after the game, mentioning that he told Klay Thompson ahead of the game that he was going to bring him off the bench and the future Hall of Famer handled the situation maturely like a true professional. The reasoning behind this decision was because the best lineup for the Warriors included rookie Brandin Podziemski, as his play allows everyone else around him to thrive.
Coach Kerr also believed that Klay coming off the bench would provide more of an offensive spark for the 2nd unit and so far in the 1 game sample size, his thought process came true. He understands that this was a tough decision but he reiterated that the 34-year-old shooting guard is a champion and one of the most competitive players he's ever met, so he responded with a big game like most champs do.
When asked what the plan is moving forward, the Warriors head coach said that for now Thompson will continue to come off the bench, but there could be more changes depending how things go.
During the future Hall of Famer's postgame press conference, he said that when he found out about the news there's 2 things that you could do, either pout or respond, and he felt like he did the latter. He understood that he would still get a ton of minutes and he knew that he had to let his ego go.
He mentioned the greatness of Manu Ginobili, stating that he came off the bench his entire career and nobody questioned his Hall of Fame career. At the end of the day, he knew that he deserved to come off the bench based on his play but he wants to embrace this new role to help his team win.
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