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Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson openly admitted that he’s having a hard time adjusting to not being part of Steve Kerr‘s closing lineup.
“You kidding me? Go from, you know, one of the best players … it’s hard for anybody. I’ll be honest with you. It’s very hard,” Thompson told reporters after the Warriors beat the Nets 109-98 in Brooklyn on Tuesday, February 5.
It was the second time in three games Thompson was benched down the stretch. This time, it was their 21-year-old Brazilian rookie Gui Santos who took over Thompson’s spot in the closing lineup.
“Gui Santos was amazing,” coach Steve Kerr told reporters after the win. “Just getting on the floor for loose balls, getting offensive rebounds, generating extra possessions.”
Santos seized the opportunity and proved he belonged after spending last season and the early part of this season with the Santa Cruz Warriors.
The 6-foot-6 Santos delivered 4 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 shot block in the 4th quarter. He ended up with career-highs across the board — 9 points on 3 of 5 shooting, 5 rebounds, 1 steal and 2 blocks.
The 33-year-old Thompson watched the final 7:19 of the game on the bench as Santos thrived.
“If a group’s playing well, you just stay with that group,” Kerr said of his decision to stick with the team’s young guys — Santos, Brandin Podziemski and Jonathan Kuminga — alongside Stephen Curry and Draymond Green to finish the game. “That’s kind of a general rule and so we stayed with the group because they were really competing and making plays. They had the momentum. So I didn’t want to stop the momentum.”
Klay Thompson Embraces New Role
Despite his diminishing role, Thompson is at peace with Kerr’s decision.
“I’ve accepted it,” Thompson said. “I could be mad, but I’m happy for these young guys, honestly. Yeah. We won. And it’s hard to get wins in this league.
“[Santos] played so hard. I am happy for Gui. I mean, incredible. He’s in The [G League], to come up here and make an impact like that? Incredible.”
Thompson left the game with solid contributions — 8 points on 4 of 9 shooting, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 30 minutes — despite not the way he and the Warriors are accustomed to.
“I feel great physically,” Thompson said at his locker after the game. “Mentally, probably a little different story. But such is life, huh?”
After a solid January when he averaged 20 points on 43.3% field goal shooting and 40.5% from deep, Thompson is off to a poor start in February.
Over his past 3 games, Thompson is averaging 10.7 points on an ugly 32.6% field goal shooting and 16.0% from the 3-point line.
Warriors Found New Way to Win
The Warriors made only 4 3-pointers, all courtesy of Curry.
They uncharacteristically shot 4 of 22 from deep. But they more than made up for it by a 72-38 advantage in points in the paint.
Kuminga continued his rise with 28 points and 10 rebounds. He shot 9 of 18 from the field, with 7 of his field goals inside the paint.
Curry, who finished with 29 points, went 4 of 6 around the rim. Podziemski, who finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds, was 4 of 5 in the painted area.
“It was a really good team effort,” Kerr said of the Warriors’ 3rd win in their last 4 games.
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