Klay Thompson torched the Hawks for 54 factors on 10 3-pointers on Monday, nevertheless it was Kevon Looney who performed hero with the game-winning tip as time expired to provide Golden State a wild 143-141 extra time victory. It was the Warriors’ fifth straight win, and their league-leading seventeenth at dwelling.
Now if they may simply determine the highway, on which they’re a league-worst 3-16, however that is a narrative for one more day. Right now, it is all about Thompson beginning to spherical into his previous kind. The man has by no means been shy about jacking up photographs, however his discretion has gotten decidedly higher because the season has progressed.
Still, Thompson has launched an unimaginable 108 photographs, together with 60 3-pointers, over his final 4 video games. He’s posting 46-41 taking pictures splits over that span. The Warriors will gladly take that, significantly with Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins nonetheless out.
Thompson completed Monday 21 for 39 from the sector. He was 10 for 21 from 3. Most refreshingly, he was simply 2 for two from the free-throw line. That’s not an environment friendly mannequin, however for pure leisure worth, you possibly can’t beat a man dropping 21 buckets, largely from jumpers, in opposition to simply two freebies. No foul searching to be discovered right here.
This was the second-highest scoring output of Thompson’s profession, trailing solely his 60-point effort that got here in simply 29 minutes in opposition to the Indiana Pacers in 2016.
Monday was Thompson’s fourth profession 50-point recreation, and seventh recreation through which he is made no less than 10 3-pointers. He has executed the latter twice this season already, beforehand registering 10 triples in opposition to Houston again in November. Thompson can be the sixth participant in NBA historical past to report no less than 50 factors and 10 3-pointers in the identical recreation.
Don’t assume I forgot about Looney, who went for 14 factors and 21 rebounds, together with 11 of the offensive selection, but was in some way a game-worst minus-20 throughout his 32 minutes. Single-game plus-minus numbers proceed to be nugatory measurements. Here’s the profitable tip:
The Warriors have three video games remaining on their season-long eight-game homestand, they usually’re all very winnable in opposition to Detroit, Orlando and Phoenix, which can nonetheless be with out Devin Booker. Curry and Wiggins needs to be again quickly. Are issues truly beginning to come collectively within the Bay?
