The Golden State Warriors finally snapped their two-game losing skid with an impressive 96-82 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday, January 9. Four players scored in double figures for the Warriors, including the returning Klay Thompson, who was making his season debut for Golden State.
Thompson delivers highlight-reel play with poster dunk vs Cavs
Thompson made quite an impact in his first game back in the Warriors lineup, scoring 17 points on 7 of 18 shooting from the floor. He also had three rebounds, one assist, and one block in 20 minutes of action.
Thompson was playing his first game since tearing the ACL in his left knee in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors on June 3, 2019. It was supposed to be just a one-season break for Thompson, but tragedy once again struck the three-time NBA champion, as he suffered a torn right Achilles tendon just before the start of the 2020-21 season.
Thompson's return was pushed back again, denying Warriors fans the opportunity to see the Splash Brothers work in tandem. That moment finally arrived 941 days after the Warriors' series-clinching loss to the Raptors. Even though he struggled with his field goal shooting against Cleveland, Thompson still captivated the fans in attendance at Chase Center.
He brought the house down with 2:56 left in the second quarter after delivering a poster dunk over two Cleveland players. Thompson drove down the lane past Jarrett Allen and took off without hesitation, throwing down a vicious one-handed driving dunk over the outstretched arms of Lauri Markkanen and Dylan Windler.
Fans and teammates could not believe their own eyes as Thompson reminded everybody that he still has the hops and explosiveness despite suffering two season-ending injuries to his knee and Achilles the past 2 ½ years.
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Thompson, Curry step up in the absence of Green
Thompson took some time for his shot to heat up, but he eventually found his range in the third quarter. He opened the second half with three consecutive shots, two of which were from midrange and one from beyond the arc. The Cavs were forced to call a timeout as Thompson sent the fans into a frenzy with his streak shooting.
Thompson got some help from Splash Brother Stephen Curry in the win against the Cavs. He scored 28 points, grabbed five rebounds, and dished out five assists. Curry made 10 of his 21 field goal attempts, including going 4 of 11 from deep. Jordan Poole came off the bench to score 14 points while Andrew Wiggins added 10 points for the Warriors.
The Warriors managed to pull off the win without their leading rebounder Draymond Green, who suffered left calf tightness during warmups. He still started the game to pay tribute to Thompson, stopping the play with a foul right after the tipoff to honor his returning teammate.
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