Typically in sports activities, all it takes is one recreation for a nickname to stay.
And on the subject of the Warriors, there are solely three phrases — two phrases and a quantity, actually — you should establish certainly one of their all-time greats:
Sport 6 Klay.
The Warriors and basketball followers received the return of Sport 6 Klay on Friday night time, and Thompson’s twelfth profession Sport 6 had a begin to meet his well-earned nickname. Thompson completed with a game-high 30 factors on 11-of-22 taking pictures, together with going 8-for-14 on 3-pointers, to steer the Warriors to a 110-96 win and clinch the sequence towards the Grizzlies.
The sharpshooter’s 17 factors within the first half, which included draining 5-of-7 pictures from 3-point vary, was important for the Warriors, who have been sputtering however nonetheless carried a lead into half. He even picked up a technical foul, too.
However do you know that Sport 6 isn't even the sport in a playoff sequence during which Thompson averaged probably the most factors per recreation?
That’s really Sport 5 — the place Thompson’s averaged 21.6 factors per recreation throughout 19 Sport 5s performed.
Klay PPG by playoff sequence recreation
Sport 1: 19.2 (479 factors, 25 video games)
Sport 2: 19.7 (493 factors, 25 video games)
Sport 3: 18.6 (447 factors, 24 video games)
Sport 4: 18.0 (449 factors, 25 video games)
Sport 5: 21.6 (411 factors, 19 video games)
Sport 6: 20.7 (248 factors, 12 video games) – up to date with stats from Friday’s recreation
Sport 7: 17.3 (69 factors, 4 video games)
General: 19.3 (2,566 factors, 133 video games)
Sport 6 Klay wasn’t a lot of a factor by the primary three playoff journeys for the Warriors, with 5 Sport 6s in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Thompson solely scored greater than 10 factors as soon as in these 5 video games (20 within the 2015 series-ender at Memphis).
He even had certainly one of his largest playoff clunkers ever in a Sport 6, when he solely scored 5 factors and fouled out in simply 25 minutes of play within the 2015 NBA Finals in Cleveland. The Warriors received the sequence and the title that night time, although, a second that has remained a meme ever since.
However Sport 6 Klay as a capital-t Factor was born in his subsequent Sport 6 in Oklahoma Metropolis, throughout the 2016 Western Convention Finals. Thompson put up playoff profession highs with 41 factors and 11 3-pointers to assist save the Warriors’ season.
From there, he’s been stellar (with one exception) within the sixth recreation of every sequence. He scored 25 within the Sport 6 loss to the Cavaliers within the 2016 Finals, then scored 35 factors towards Houston within the 2018 Western Convention Finals to drive a Sport 7.
2019 noticed three Sport 6s, and whereas he solely scored 9 towards the Clippers within the first spherical (and let Kevin Durant go for 50), he scored 27 within the Western Convention Finals to assist a Durant-less Warriors knock off the Rockets once more and get to the NBA Finals.
Then, in these Finals towards the Raptors, Thompson had 30 factors in simply three quarters. However the final two got here after he tore his ACL driving to the ring, memorably getting back from the locker room to make the free throws.
So Thompson’s total Sport 6 level common was 19.8 getting into Friday night time. However now, within the seven Sport 6s since 2016? Thompson’s averaged 28.1 factors.
It’s that Sport 6 Klay who the basketball world — although most likely not the Grizzlies — is so excited to see again.