PHOENIX — Klay Thompson was trying to put everything into perspective Tuesday morning after shootaround.
Thompson preached the importance of being patient with himself as he works to get back into rhythm. He also knows he has to be tolerant and trust the training staff’s cautious plan to prepare him for the grind of an 82-game regular season.
“I’m such a perfectionist, I want to be great right now,” Thompson said. “It’s a long season and I’d rather peak playoff time versus early November, January.”
But under the surface, frustration was brewing. Coach Steve Kerr knew it, Thompson’s teammates sensed it.
“Klay’s frustrated that he can’t play more right now,” Kerr acknowledged before the Warriors-Suns tipped off. “He’d like to have his minutes bumped up but the reality is as you get a little older, as a player when you’ve had some injuries is you gotta be a little more patient.”
That annoyance, most likely heightened by another poor performance and plenty of talking by Devin Booker, resulted in an unprecedented blowup for Thompson, who received his first career ejection in Tuesday night’s 134-105 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
Thompson and Booker had been jawing at one another throughout the night. Thompson reminded the 25-year-old guard of the four fancy championship rings in his jewelry box over and over again.
The verbal jousting between the two reached a breaking point with 6:31 left in the third when they bumped chests after the play stop. Both were slapped with double technical fouls for the interaction.
Stars Stephen Curry and Chris Paul tried to intervene, but Thompson was fed up and downright irked. He appeared to take it out on Mikal Bridges, pushing the Suns forward away after the two collided. Moments later, Curry and assistant coach Chris DeMarco had to hold back an incensed Thompson when the five-time All-Star was assessed a second technical and tossed from the game.
Thompson’s fire didn’t stop even after getting sent away to the locker room for the first time in 759 regular season and postseason games. As he walked off the court, the four-time champion continued to chirp at the Suns bench and waved his hand, pointing to where he’d put his four rings.
Curry doesn’t think Thompson’s actions justified an ejection. There was ample trash talking on both sides, Curry said, and “everybody was trying to collect themselves in that moment.
“After he got thrown out, he had a lot more stuff to say which I love,” Curry said. “The back and forth is a part of [the game.] I like that he’s engaged in that respect because it matters. It matters to him. I’m sure he’ll be able to keep it together going forward.”
Tuesday was another tough outing for Thompson, who struggled in his 19 minutes with Booker as his primary defender. Thompson went 1-for-8 from the field and missed all five of his 3-point attempts, finishing with just two points.
“He was just having a tough night,” said Booker, who had a game-high 34 points on 10-of-19 shooting. “Everything plays into that, just frustration. I’ve been there before. You know what they have, they have four rings and they’re going to use that in trash talk rightfully so, respectfully. But that don’t have nothing to do with competing.”
After Thompson was ejected, the Suns closed out the third quarter with a 22-9 run and led by 19 points entering the final frame. Golden State was able to recover a bit in the fourth before the score got out of hand.
Kerr and Co. had a great deal to say about the Warriors’ lack of energy and commitment on defense after their second loss of the season. Golden State was peeved at the number of fouls they were called for and that the team sent the Suns to the foul line 34 times — double the number the Warriors attempted.
But there was also plenty of empathy for the agonized Thompson, who’s continuing to have his mental fortitude challenged.
“Klay cares so much about the game, about his own impact on our team,” Kerr said. “He wants it so badly and he’s trying to force everything right now. He’s just trying too hard but he’s done that many times even before the injuries.
“I’ll remind him of that. We have 78 games to go. He’s gonna be fine, our team’s gonna be fine. He’s got a lot of work ahead. As his conditioning comes back, he’s got to get over the hump.”
“Klay knows what it takes. He’s a professional. The guy is coming back from way more than I did,” Draymond Green added. “It’s not up to me to tell him how he feels or how he should feel. However he feels is valid to me… That man has been through a lot. He knows what it takes, he’ll get it done.”
Thompson was the best two-way guard in the league before his injuries.
He’s not there now. It’s not certain that he’ll get back to that level either, though he’s desperate and determined to return to his All-Star form.
Some of intrusive thoughts that haunted him before his comeback linger even now 10 months and a championship removed from his return to the court following back-to-back major injuries.
Thompson knows he’s not 25 anymore. His mileage is adding up and taking its toll.
Thompson was an iron man for his first eight NBA seasons and has played in an additional 145 playoff games, or nearly another two full regular NBA campaigns. The 32-year-old now spends as much time in the training room as he does the court. His pregame routine is more strenuous, ensuring that his body is warmed up properly.
“I’ve accepted it,” he said. “And I’m going to continue to get better each week. And although I want to have the big shooting nights, like record-setting nights, I know those come with hard work and being patient because that stuff’s organic.”
In the meantime, Thompson can lean on the support of his teammates to help him weather the storm.
“Just understand it’s the big picture of what we’re trying to do this season,” Curry said. “He had elevated expectations of what he could do individually, he should because he’s Klay Thompson. He has a body of work that has demonstrated who he is. And I’m sure he’s comparing himself to that.
“It’s gonna come. He has no doubts about it. Just try to stay patient, locked in and enjoy yourself as much as possible… He deserves opportunity to go out there and have fun playing basketball and not worry about anything else other than that and then usually good stuff happens.”
