Klay Thompson's Return to GS Celebrated by Fans as Steph Curry, Warriors Beat Mavs
Scott Polacek@@ScottPolacek
Featured Columnist IVNovember 13, 2024
Klay Thompson did plenty of winning during his time with the Golden State Warriors and formed one of the most dynamic duos in NBA history with Stephen Curry.
It turns out, going against Curry isn't as fun.
Curry led his Warriors to a dramatic 120-117 victory over Thompson's Dallas Mavericks in Tuesday's NBA Cup group play game at Chase Center. It was the latter's first game against his former team as a visiting player, but the two-time MVP played the role of hero by going on a personal 10-0 run in the final four minutes.
He finished with 37 points, nine assists and six rebounds and rose to the moment like he seemingly always does with a step-back triple in the last 30 seconds to help secure the win. Golden State improved to 9-2 as a result, while the Mavericks fell to 5-6 with their third consecutive loss.
Thompson's return was the story before Curry's heroics, and he finished with 22 points, four rebounds and three assists behind 6-of-12 shooting from deep. Luka DonΔiΔ also impressed and tallied 31 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals.
Yet social media was primarily focused on Thompson's return:
He may have been the opposition Tuesday, but Golden State fans welcomed Thompson back with open arms.
Whether it was the pregame video montage of his most memorable moments with the Warriors, the rousing standing ovation when his name was announced or the captain hats in honor of "Captain Klay" the crowd wore, it was nothing but well-deserved love.
That love came as anything but a surprise, as the future Hall of Famer will forever be a franchise legend who won four championships as a two-time All-NBA selection and five-time All-Star. He also fought through serious Achilles and ACL injuries that cost him the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons only to help deliver the 2022 title.
Thompson was half of the best shooting backcourt in NBA history alongside his fellow Splash Brother in Curry and quickly became a fan favorite because of his ability to catch fire at a moment's notice all while playing lockdown defense when he was at his best.
Fittingly, the Splash Brothers were under the spotlight right out of the gates. Curry pointed at Thompson after hitting a three over him, while Thompson responded with his former teammate's signature shimmy after hitting back-to-back triples.
That shooting helped stake the Mavericks to a four-point halftime lead, although DonΔiΔ pouring in 22 points certainly helped as well.
Yet Golden State answered right back in the third quarter behind Curry's individual brilliance. He mixed in his vintage outside shot, drives to the basket and timely facilitating when defenders collapsed as the home team outscored Dallas by 11 to take a seven-point lead into the fourth.
Still, it felt inevitable Thompson would have another memorable moment, and that moment came when he drilled two three-pointers and a driving layup while playing solid defense on Curry in a three-minute span as the Mavericks took the lead heading into crunch time.
It was the type of spark Warriors fans grew so accustomed to seeing on their side for so many years, but they have also grown accustomed to Curry putting on his Superman cape and saving the day.
That is exactly what he did.
