Guard Desmond Bane of the Memphis Grizzlies was praised by Gilbert Arenas for his development on the court and for leading the team in scoring when Ja Morant was out. However, Arenas used Bane’s praises as an opportunity to mock Warriors guard Klay Thompson, claiming that Thompson has never developed as much as Bane has.
“I never imagined that someone as special as Klay would recover. Despite your four rings, your role as a spot shooter is unchanged from when you first started.
The video would demonstrate that Klay Thompson had maybe the most versatile оffensive repertoire in the NBA before to his ιnjury. Although he was happy to take players off the dribble even when he didn’t want to, his primary strength was rhythm shooting. He was adaptable since he could play the Warriors’ defensive swingman position as well as forward.
It’s true that Klay has become more proficient at three-point shooting because of his previous incredible efficiency, but he has also shown flashes of becoming a threаt from wherever on the court. Given his youth and lack of Klay Thompson’s renown, Desmond Bane was certain to demonstrate improvement and progress after being trusted as the Grizzlies’ No. 2 scoring option when Morant is healthy.
Although Klay Thompson’s game has been impacted by his physical deterioration, it wouldn’t be accurate to suggest that he is having difficulty because he has spent his entire career making spot-up jumpers.
Is Klay Thompson out of the water or is he just having a rough start?
It is a little depressing to see Klay Thompson’s 15.8 point, 40.4% shooting average this season given how fantastic his regular season performance was last year. Klay averaged 21.9 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in the previous campaign. When Curry was sidelined due to ιnjury, he was the Warriors’ go-to scorer. He carried over his bad performance from the 2023 playoffs into this season.
A solid start to the season is unusual for Thompson. Since Klay usually finds his rhythm by that point in the NBA season, January will be a true indicator of how well he performs. He averaged 27.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, and 2.3 assit in January of the previous year. If he could routinely score 20 points, the Warriors would be very different, but he doesn’t have to replicate those numbers.
The Warriors are at 10–12, and they lack the firepower to offset Klay’s subpar efforts. Despite Klay Thompson’s poor shooting, the Warriors still had a dependable scorer in Jordan Poole from the previous season. In the periods when Curry was sidelined due to ιnjury, Poole and Klay were both outstanding for the team. Chris Paul is now their starting point guard after coming off the bench. The only weapon the Warriors have against the NBA’s high-powered offenses is Curry.
Following a career-threatening ιnjury layoff from 2019 to 2022, Klay has had a physical decline. It appears that despite a strong season and a half since his return, he was bound to start declining like way. Due to his restricted range of motion, he is dependent on his shot to potentially change the game’s outcome. Should that fail to materialize, the Warriors might have to let go of the franchise icon prior to Curry and the team’s final competitive window ending.