Klay Thompson saved his best for last in the Western Conference finals, with 32 points and eight 3-pointers in a closeout 120-110 Game 5 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday to help the Warriors advance to the NBA Finals.
But when TNT’s Ernie Johnson went off-script during the postgame ceremony at Chase Center and asked Thompson how it felt to be back in the NBA Finals after a long two years recovering from injuries, Thompson responded with a joke.
“I mean, I should’ve had 10 threes,” Thompson said. “I left like three on the board tonight.”
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Then, Thompson got serious.
“I’m just so happy to be back,” Thompson said. “I’m so thankful for this team. These guys carried us to an incredible start [this season] and then me coming back in there. I don’t want to get emotional Ernie, I can’t believe we’re back. This is crazy. I’m going to enjoy this tonight. Wow, we’ve still got four more to go, Dub Nation. I’m going to soak this in tonight. I can’t believe it.”
The emotion in Thompson’s voice was clear.
He’s 32 now, with two years of his prime robbed by back-to-back injuries that could’ve derailed his career. He tore his ACL during the 2019 NBA Finals and missed the 2019-20 season. Then the next year, he tore his right Achilles tendon before the season even began, missing the 2020-21 season as well.
Golden State Warriors
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Thompson came back midway through the 2021-22 season in January to much fanfare. He had some throwback moments while also struggling at times -- but he has found his game when the Warriors have needed it most in the playoffs, from “Game 6 Klay” closing out the Memphis Grizzlies in the second round to a highly-efficient Game 5 performance against the Mavericks on Thursday.
As Thompson said, there are four more wins to go. Then, the storybook comeback would really be complete.