Klay Thompson’s impact on the court has been devastating for the Denver Nuggets during their opening-round NBA playoff series with the Warriors, and the Splash Brother has done it all while hardly making an appearance at the free-throw line.
Through four games, Thompson is 11th among all current postseason players in points per game with a 24.5-point average.
That's not bad for a guy coming off of two devastating injuries, but the numbers become even more impressive when you look at how many free throws the league’s other top scorers have made in the playoffs so far.
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Let’s just say Thompson is an obvious outlier.
You didn’t read that wrong -- Thompson has made only one free throw in the playoffs so far out of two free-throw attempts. And still, he’s right up there with the rest of the postseason’s top 20 shooters.
The other 19 players on the top-scoring list are averaging 27.7 free throws across the playoffs, compared to Thompson’s lone shot. Ja Morant has the most on the list with 38 made free throws for the Memphis Grizzlies, and Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown is closest to Thompson at the bottom of the free-throw list with 14 made.
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Even through just four playoff games compared to other players’ five, it’s not surprising that Thompson is one of the league’s top postseason shooters. What is surprising, however, is the fact that he has still been able to have such an impact without the added bonus of free-throw points.
So why hasn’t Thompson frequented the free-throw line this series?
He has been more concerned with getting shots off at the 3-point line, where he has made a team-high -- and playoff-high -- 21 field goals from behind the arc. Seven of those came in Game 4 on Sunday and accounted for 21 of his 32 total points, and he only needed four dribbles to complete the high-scoring performance.
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Thompson’s catch-and-shoot strategy has netted the Golden State star plenty of points and little opportunity to be fouled. Ironically enough, he has heckled the Dubs’ other two top shooters, Jordan Poole and Steph Curry, for underperforming on free throws this postseason.
While Thompson is sure to add to his playoff-leading 3-point total during Game 5 on Wednesday, whether or not he’ll make up ground on free throws remains to be seen.
As long as he continues to sink jaw-dropping shots alongside Curry and Poole, Dub Nation probably doesn’t mind his absence at the free-throw line.