The Golden State Warriors bounced back after Philadelphia interrupted their 11-game winning streak. And there isn’t a better way to do that but to beat Lakers.
The champs had a fierce finishing quarter in which they froze the Lakers’ attack and limit them to only 15 points.
Though, we need to say that LeBron James didn’t play because of a slight injury, which made the job much easier for the Warriors. Still, the feisty youngsters in purple and gold didn’t want to back down, and they even had a lead during the third and the start of the last quarter, but couldn’t endure GSW’s pressure in the final minutes.
“This was a typical game where you let your guard down a little because the other team’s best player’s not playing, so there was no life in the building and our guys weren’t generating any energy,” said Steve Kerr.
Golden State’s coach admitted that his team had some troubles finding the right motivation to play against LeBronless visitors.
But Klay Thompson didn’t have a problem with that, and posted another good performance against the team whom he likes to compete. After the recent burst in which Thompson set several records, and dropped 44 points on the LA team, he had a game-high last night in Oakland, scoring 28 buckets.
Still, the main thing about him tonight wasn’t his excellent play, but something other than that. On several occasions, a group of Lakers fans was chanting “we want Klay/Thompson,” and that received huge booes from the rest of the crowds.
Lakers fans infiltrated Oracle and tried to recruit Klay 😂 pic.twitter.com/3pidTkWfJ0
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 3, 2019
And a lot of media attention.
Many rumors about his status appeared lately, and in some of them, Klay’s future has been linked with the Lakers. That is something which dates way back, and according to some sources, the player is not immune to Lakers’ offers.
Whether is that because of his father’s history with the purple and gold, or the fact that he could get a considerably better contract offer there, we are not still sure.
“Look at the bright side,” Thompson said. “It means you’re wanted. It means you’re doing something right.”
Warriors are going to have a lot of problems during the free agency. They will have to find a way to keep both Kevin Durant and Klay Thomspon as they both can leave Oakland next summer.
Durant had the similar experience like Thompson’s, when GSW visited New York. The fans were trying to get his attention since they knew his contract situation. KD has a player option for the next season, meaning he can become a free agent if he wants to.
But it seems that it is a regular thing for Madison Square Garden, as Kyrie Irving also heard his name from the stands two days ago.
Knicks will be trying to recruit several big names which is why they traded Kristaps Porzingis to Dallas, and are tanking the season to increase the chances of having the No.1 pick in the upcoming draft.
According to Thompson, the Warriors are focused only on the championship title. All the business obligations will be dealt after the season. And if some of the players decide to leave, there would be no bad blood between him and the rest of the organization, because it is all part of the job.
Klay Thompson on the increased free agency noise lately and how that plays in a locker room: “We’re all grown man. Whatever we decide to do, we’re all brothers and we’re not going to hold grudges.” pic.twitter.com/Dcg7CPC1Va
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) February 3, 2019
“Not very many teams believe they have a chance to win a title. And we’re one of them. And I think that’s the only thing in our minds.” Klay said when speaking about the chants and the overall situation regarding the future of the club.
“At the end of the day, whatever we decide to do, we’re all brothers, and we’re not going to hold any grudges, because it’s business,” he concluded.
Thompson has one more year in his contract, for which he will receive $19 million. DeMarcus Cousins also becomes a free agent.
That will cause a lot of headaches for Warriors fans and executives.
Nikola Velickovic is a sports journalist who loves to write and read on all sports. Nikola contributes both news updates and functions as a sports breaking news writer at WagerBop.
Twitter:
Email: nikola@wagerbop.com
Leave a Reply