Five-point difference, the Warriors lost on the road, just a stone's throw away from the 4-0 Nuggets on aggregate. But in game four of the NBA's first round, Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson exploded, shooting 12-of-20 from the field, 7-of-11 from three-point range and 32 points on 1-of-2 free throw. After this game, the "playoff soup god" returned.
In the first three games of the series, Thompson also played well, but the highest score was only 26 points, which was the last game. In that game, he also shot a high percentage, shooting 10-of-18 and 6-of-13 from three-point range. But that's clearly not yet the best Thompson. So, we saw the stronger Thompson return.
When Thompson hit three-pointers on a dry jumper again and again, as confident and decisive as he was before the serious injury, the Warriors' bench cheered, and such a soup god also let us see his peak style again. Less than 4 minutes into the first quarter, Green blocked and Thompson received the ball and used the cover to bypass the opponent and directly pull out, which was a three-pointer, exactly the same as before the injury. Attack again, Curry splits, Thompson cuts a direct dunk.
Such a Thompson is also the Thompson that the Warriors most desire to see. Over the past two seasons, Thompson has suffered two major injuries, a torn cruciate ligament and a torn Achilles tendon, either of which is enough to ruin the careers of most athletes.
But Thompson didn't, just as the Nets' Durant was still strong in his first season of returning with a ruptured tendon, Thompson was just as strong in his first season of return.
Although forced to take a two-season suspension, he is still strong after returning this season. In this game, especially in the second half, when Thompson repeatedly pulled out three points against the defense, the mighty God of Soup finally returned. In order to defend him, the Nuggets continued to expand their defense, and Jokic even blocked him when he was on the defensive, but this still could not stop his outburst. Although the Warriors lost the game, the return of Tang Shen made the Warriors quite happy. The playoff 32-point performance is also his highest playoff score (tie) near the last four years.
Thompson has had a great time this season, and in his final game of the regular season, he also scored 41 points in a big win over the Pelicans, shooting 7-of-14 from three-point range. But the regular season and the playoffs are obviously different, and the intensity is not a level at all, so no matter how well Thompson performs in the regular season, it still needs to be tested by the playoffs.
Now, he's proven with his performance that he's perfectly up to the intensity of the playoffs. With his return, Curry will also become more relaxed, and the Warriors, who have been dormant for three seasons, will set sail again.