Klay Thompson’s Mind-Blowing Bench Performance Leaves Warriors Fans Stunned!

Klay Thompson picked up right where he left off from an eye-opening first half against the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. After scoring 17 points and draining three triples before halftime, the future Hall-of-Famer did even more damage in a scintillating third quarter—making a convincing case for him to continue coming off the bench going forward.

Thompson dropped 18 points on the Jazz in the third quarter, hitting six of his seven shots overall and four of five from deep. He was cashing jumpers from all over the floor off different actions, too.

One of his treys was a walk-up pull over the outstretched arms of Walker Kessler. Another came in basic pick-and-roll action as Utah deployed drop coverage. Thompson also banged a three off the Warriors’ famed split action, coming off a Brandin Podziemski screen at the left wing and waiting for Kris Dunn to fly by before letting fly.

The only ones more enthused than Thompson and his teammates by the veteran’s poetically timed scoring outburst? Warriors fans and NBA followers alike.

Heading into the halftime locker room, Thompson extolled the virtues of coming off the bench for the first time in 12 years—back when he was a rookie and Golden State had yet to trade Monta Ellis.

“Coming off the bench gave me fresh legs, especially off a back-to-back,” Thompson said. “That was nice to come in with a clean slate.”

It’s still unclear whether Steve Kerr plans on sticking with Podziemski as a starter going forward or if Thompson’s reserve role against Utah is a byproduct of the Dubs playing on the second leg of a back-to-back. The Warriors will have plenty of time to mull it over with the All-Star break dawning.

Either way, Thompson’s big night under new, potentially fraught circumstances is just further evidence Golden State has turned a midseason corner.