Thompson on record 11 treys: I should've had 13
OKLAHOMA CITY — Golden State Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson wasn’t necessarily satisfied with setting the NBA playoff record with 11 3-pointers made.
“I should have had at least 13 because I missed some wide-open looks early,” Thompson said with a straight face after his 41-point performance helped the Warriors extend their historic season, sending the Western Conference finals to a Game 7 with a 108-101 victory Saturday over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The less heralded Splash Brother will just have to settle for one of the most impressive clutch shooting nights of all time.
Thompson went 11-of-18 from behind the 3-point line, with several of the swishes coming from far behind the line. His record-setting 10th made 3 was a straightaway 28-footer over Russell Westbrook to pull the Warriors within four points with 4:57 remaining. Thompson’s last bucket was a 25-footer in transition from the right wing that gave Golden State the lead for good with 1:23 remaining.
Thompson scored 19 points in the fourth quarter — one more than the Thunder — to carry the 73-win Warriors to a comeback from an eight-point deficit. He was 5-of-6 from 3-point range in the final frame, of which he played every second.
“Obviously, Klay Thompson was ridiculous,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. “I mean, the shooting was some of the most incredible shooting you’ll ever see.”
Added Stephen Curry, who scored 29 points: “All Klay needs is a sliver of daylight. The shots he made tonight were huge, obviously. But they were shots that he had his feet underneath him and he just had all the confidence in the world. He understood the moment.”
The previous playoff record of nine 3-pointers made was shared by Ray Allen, Vince Carter, Rex Chapman and Jason Terry. That was news to Thompson, whose 41 points were a career playoff high.
“I had no idea what the record was,” said Thompson, whose 276 3-point field goals in the regular season were the third most in NBA history, behind only Curry’s totals from the past two seasons. “I didn’t even know I had 11 3s. I was just trying to be aggressive, whether that was getting to the rim or getting a good shot from beyond the perimeter.
“Feels good to own a record, but it will feel much better if we close them out on Monday.”
