https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/warriors/warriors-need-klay-thompsons-shot-do-or-die-game-6-vs-lakers

Dubs desperately need 'Game 6 Klay' in do-or-die clash vs. Lakers

2H ago
by Monte Poole

The Warriors keep waiting for Klay Thompson to shoot like the Klay
Thompson we’ve come to know. Their patience is commendable, as they
routinely cite what he is providing rather than what he is not.

Leave it to Draymond Green to add a teaspoon of cold truth to the bowl
of warm praise.

Asked if he felt the Warriors needed a potent shooting night from Klay
and whether there might be pressure for him to deliver it in Game 6
Friday night and perhaps beyond, Draymond paused for the briefest of
moments.

“We're champions, so there's pressure every time you step on the floor,”
Green said late Wednesday night, after the Warriors’ Game 5 victory over
the Lakers. “You go out there, you don't win, people are ready to crush
you. People forget about the things that you have done in the past
immediately. So, it's always pressure when we step on the floor.

“I do think he's due for a big shooting night.”

“Due” is a polite way to put it for a career 41.6-percent shooter from
distance, but it’s a direct reference to reality.

Thompson has made a splendid career as a two-way player, but his shot is
what strikes fear into opponents. There have been dozens of examples of
him demolishing defenses with long-range strikes. The Lakers got a
glimpse of it in Game 2 of these Western Conference semifinals, when
Klay scored 30 points on 11-of-18 (61.1 percent) shooting from the
field, including a breathtaking 8-of-11 (72.7 percent) from deep.

Five of his teammates also scored in double figures, and the Warriors
won by 27. When Klay cooks, the Warriors fly. They are, according to
statmuse.com, 64-10 when he drops at least 30 points.

Thompson’s totals in the other four games, three of which the Warriors
lost: 20-of-62 (32 percent) from the field, 14-of-40 (35 percent) beyond
the arc. An average of 14.8 points per game.

The nadir was in Los Angeles, where Klay yearned to perform at his best,
only to deliver his worst. He averaged 12 points, on 32/33.3-percent
splits. He had six turnovers, a career-high in the postseason –
“inexcusable,” he said in the locker room – and followed it in Game 4
with a forgettable performance punctuated by two late-game heaves
deserving of Page 1 in The Book of Bad Shots.

Meanwhile, Klay is being showered with compliments for his defense, as
if any observer would focus on the steady hand rather than the one
failing to juggle five cups of ketchup.

“The thing with Klay is he's an incredible two-way basketball player.
That’s what wins in the playoffs,” Steve Kerr said after Game 5.
“Shooting comes and goes, even for the best. But if you can defend,
which Klay obviously can do, then you can help a team win a playoff game
– and in Klay's case a lot of playoff games.

“So, the great thing is we know Klay's due for a good shooting night.
But whether it comes or not, we know his defense is going to impact the
game.”

Klay’s defense is needed for the Warriors to be competitive. For them to
be successful, they also need his scoring.

“You’re talking about a guy who is one of the, arguably one of the
greatest shooters ever that we've ever seen,” Green said. “He steps up
in big moments.”

For most of this series, Stephen Curry has been trying to defend – the
Lakers are forcing him to use energy on that end – while also trying to
fill the tremendous scoring void created by backcourt sidekicks Jordan
Poole and Thompson combining to average 26.4 points on 40-of-128 (32.3
percent) shooting.

That’s a formula for Golden State failure.

Having Klay on the floor provides much-needed spacing, particularly in
lineups with two “non-shooters.” The Lakers through the first five game
have respected Klay’s shooting. They continue to chase him hard.

But even when he gets open, Thompson rarely punishes the team for which
he grew up cheering.

“I hope they start helping off of him since he's not shooting well,”
Green said. “Because he'll get it going fast.”

Klay’s first two chances for a night of postseason glory against the
Lakers in LA ended in frustration. He was disappointed, not so much in
what he did but what he did not. He lives for buckets.

He gets another chance Friday night. No guarantee there will be another.