The Golden State Warriors picked up a 109-98 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Monday night. With 7:19 left in the fourth quarter, Klay Thompson went to the bench and did not check back into the game. Thompson struggled on the night — he had eight points on 4-for-9 shooting and did not make any threes in 30 minutes of work — so Steve Kerr opted to go with Moses Moody and Gui Santos off the bench, instead.
Thompson met with the media after the game and got asked how he was feeling. After saying he felt physically great, Thompson was remarkably candid, telling the press “mentally, probably a little different story.” And then, Thompson went on to have maybe the most interesting back-and-forth with the media that we’ve seen this season, as he tried to balance the pride he felt in how well his young teammates played with his own personal struggles, particularly when it comes to not closing games.
Klay Thompson said it’s hard to not close: “Yeah, you kidding me? To go from one of the best players…It’s hard for anybody.”
Klay credited the young guys.
Draymond from off camera (to reporters): “I didn’t close Game 5 of the Finals. Who the f*** cares?” pic.twitter.com/CzYNX4vulw
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 6, 2024
It’s easy to remember how hard Thompson took Charles Barkley’s criticism that he’s “not the same guy” after his injuries from last season and see the parallels between that and this. For how laid back Thompson’s been off the court during his NBA career, he’s always had a remarkable competitive streak, and you can see it in moments like this when he’s struggling with a dip in his performance — across his last five games, he’s only 12-for-49 (24.5 percent) from behind the three-point line. If there is good news for Thompson, it’s that he’s the kind of guy who has shown he can snap out of a rut and get back on track, and it’s not hard to imagine him on the court and playing a big role the next time the Warriors are trying to close out a win.