The Golden State Warriors have never been healthy in a regular season, but they were healthy during the 2022 NBA playoffs and they have gradually increased their game.
Clay Thompson is one of the reasons why they are not complete until recently.
He suffered an ACL injury during the 2019 NBA Finals for which he had to bear all the costs the following season, and a torn Achilles knocked him out of the 2020-21 campaign and his first half.
Since returning to mid-season, Thompson’s play, especially on the offensive edge, has been up and down.
He has some games where he looked annoying, but there are other games where he basically looks like his old, pre-2019 nature.
Lately, those good games are happening more often.
Drymond Green says Clay Thompson is back.
“I hope he doesn’t believe the story because it sounds like him. Say I’m still working to get back, not hell he did. She’s back. ” pic.twitter.com/vpWVzY1Mu4
– Mark Haynes (@MarkHaynesba) May 19, 2022
Thompson has been Snakebeat
When the Warriors lost the 2019 championship to the Toronto Raptors, it seemed like a screen for their rising dynasty.
Thompson was injured in the final game of the final, and Kevin Durant knocked out his Achilles in the previous contest, then left as a free agent to join the Brooklyn net.
This presented the 2019-20 season as an empty year for Golden State, especially when Stephen Curry suffered a hand injury that kept him out for almost the entire season.
Just before the 2020-21 season, Thompson suffered his Achilles injury and the Warriors failed to make the playoffs again.
It was no coincidence that Thompson’s injury matched his team’s disappointing performance.
Not only is he one of the NBA’s true elite shooters and the greatest of all time, but he is also considered one of the game’s best wing defenders.
That’s a whole lot of skill and talent to lose.
This regular season has been like a transition period for the Warriors, as they have brought together young talents like Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins in the last few years with the returning Thompson.
Chemistry has taken some time to develop, especially Curry and Drymond Green have lost significant time due to injuries.
It was widely expected that it would take some time for Thompson to return to his old ways, and it did.
When he shot an outstanding 45.6 percent from 3-point ground in February, his shot comes and goes throughout the season.
Looks like he’s getting his sea foot back
Towards the end of the regular season, however, Thompson began to introduce it.
He scored at least 33 points in four of his six finals, including a 36-point game against the Utah Jazz and a 41-point blast in a blowout against the New Orleans Pelicans.
In the first round of the playoffs, Denver Nuggets vs. the 6-foot-6 wing averaged 22.6 points at 50.6 percent overall shooting and 45.8 percent from downtown.
He struggled a bit early in the next series against the Memphis Grizzlies, but he was strong in the last two games, including a 30-point performance in the series-clincher where he hit 8-3-points out of 14.
I am very happy for Clay Thompson
Not being able to do what he loves most after 941 days, he went ahead with a big time tonight and proved to the suspects that he had a lot left in the tank.
No one deserves this more than Klay!#NBAPlayoffs #Kelly # Warrior #Dabnation pic.twitter.com/JONAw2B9Hd
– Basketball Craze (bball_craze) May 14, 2022
In Game 1 of the Dallas Mavericks vs. Western Conference Final on Wednesday, Thompson shot 7-13 off the field.
It won’t happen all at once, but perhaps some of Thompson’s best of the year have yet to come.