Thompson ‘pissed’ that Warriors legitimately considered trading him

Discussion in 'Golden State Warriors' started by truebluefan, Aug 26, 2014.

  1. truebluefan

    truebluefan Administrator Staff Member Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2010
    Messages:
    212,768
    Likes Received:
    821
    Trophy Points:
    113
    There is no column in an NBA box score for playing through an injury, just as there are no bonus clauses in contracts based on defensive assignments accepted to cover a teammate's ass. It's why such players, especially ones whose place or paycheck in the league already is secure, are to be treasured.

    The Golden State Warriors have two such players in David Lee and Klay Thompson. Two players they seriously considered dealing to the Minnesota Timberwolves this summer to acquire Kevin Love. Two players they must now convince to fill those invisible columns and ignore they were nearly sent away as a reward for their previous service.

    Most probably know what Lee and Thompson have contributed to the Warriors' recent rise to relevance, but it bears recounting for two reasons. One, because of how perfunctorily so many were willing to see them moved for Love, perhaps not fully appreciating their part in the Warriors' renaissance.

    And, two, because it now appears they aren't going anywhere, and Warriors management has some fence-mending to do if it wants to assure that such sacrifices and ass-covering is done with the same enthusiasm that fueled the team's recent success.

    Two years ago, Lee played well enough to be the Warriors' first All-Star in 16 years and help them to their first playoff appearance in six years. He played in 79 of 82 regular-season games only because he was willing to battle through a bruised knee, a sprained ankle and a sore back. He also missed one game on a suspension for shoving Pacers center Roy Hibbert. Without all that, the Warriors probably wouldn't have seen the postseason, what with forward Brandon Rush lost for the season in the first week and center Andrew Bogut limited to 32 games.

    Lee's first career trip to the playoffs appeared to end in the first game when he suffered what the team at one point announced as a season-ending torn hip flexor. Eleven days later he was hobbling onto the court for Game 6, playing a single Willis Reedesque minute that inspired a deafening roar from the crowd and an emotional wave that contributed to a series-clinching victory.

    Thompson has made similar sacrifices, including an iron-man run of playing 182 out of a possible 183 games. Despite being a 6'7" shooting guard with one of the most textbook and trustworthy jump shots in the league, he has dedicated himself to becoming a lockdown defender. He did so well in that regard that the Warriors asked him in practically every game to guard the opponent's biggest perimeter threat, whether that be an explosive point guard such as Damian Lillard, Russell Westbrook or Chris Paul, or such elite scoring 2-guards as James Harden and DeMar DeRozan. He averaged 18.4 points and scored at least double digits in 74 of 81 games, and yet there were critics who had the nerve to question why there were nights he didn't have his legs to score 20 or, regardless of all that on-the-ball defending, didn't average more than three rebounds a night.

    Ask any GM or scout and they'll tell you Thompson is one of the best two-way players in the game, yet he hasn't sniffed either All-Star or All-Defensive team recognition. To make matters worse, teammate Andre Iguodala did receive All-Defensive first-team honors last season, even though injuries left him a shell of himself and forced the Warriors to give Thompson the assignments Iguodala was expected to fill. "Klay is a much better defender," said one former Warriors assistant coach. "It's not even close. It's all based on reputation and stats. The truth is, Dre is always gambling on the weak side."

    Thompson handled all of that without complaint. The reward? A summer wondering if he would be dealt to the league's moribund Minnesota outpost.

    Read more http://www.prosportsdaily.com/Headlines/ExternalArticle?articleId=318450
     

Share This Page