Klay Thompson and the Warriors have been waiting, impatiently, for what occurred Sunday night at Toyota Center in Houston.
Mired in the worst start to a season of his NBA career, Thompson finally broke out of his slump with a 41-point barrage that included 10 3-pointers, helping the Warriors beat the Houston Rockets 127-120 for their first road win of the season.
In Thompson's own words, the proverbial flood gates burst open.
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"Man, it feels amazing," Thompson told Bonta Hill, Chris Mullin and Festus Ezeli on "Warriors Postgame Live" after the win. "That's it fellas. It feels amazing. I'm hard on myself. I've been wanting one of these (games), so to get one and kind of open the flood gates, it's only up from here, I promise you."
The version of Thompson the Warriors got Sunday night is the version they need from this point forward.
Thompson entered the game against the Rockets shooting career lows in field goal percentage (36.3) and 3-point percentage (33.6), and his shot selection was becoming an issue. Despite how poorly he's shooting from long distance, he was taking a career-high 9.6 3-point attempts this season.
His propensity for firing away might have been one of the issues discussed during a Warriors' team meeting prior to their win over the New York Knicks on Friday night.
Golden State Warriors
But Thompson isn't going to stop shooting. The Warriors don't want him to stop shooting. They just want him to pick his spots better. Don't force anything. Let the shots come in the flow of the offense.
"Well, you know me," Thompson told Hill, Mullin and Ezeli. "To me, every shot is a great shot. But sometimes I need my teammates to reel me in. We had a great talk before that Knicks game. And this morning, Steve (Kerr) played a highlight tape of Barcelona, the tiki-taka method they've been using for years. That's kind of what we do. Hit the open man. Cut. I finally feel like myself. My legs feel great, I'm cutting to the rim, taking great shots and I'm just excited for what's to come. Not going to lie guys. That felt amazing. Wow. I don't care if it's a mid-November game. That felt great."
Following the team chat Friday, Thompson has scored 61 points on 22-of-39 from the field and 14-of-23 from 3-point range. While he might have been forcing the issue the first few weeks of the season, he's not doing that now.
"You know Mully, when I keep the game simple, I'm at my best," Thompson said. "And when I simplify things, that's when I go for 60 (points) or 10 threes. I'm not the most flashy player, but I'm efficient when I'm just keeping it simple. Tonight was one of those night, and tonight I was trying to build on this and replicate through the season."
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The Warriors face the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night at Smoothie King Center, but it's unlikely Thompson will play since he has been held out of the second game of back-to-backs since returning last season from a 31-month absence. He wants to play but he's going to trust the medical staff.
If Thompson doesn't play Monday night, his next chance to flood the stat sheet will come Wednesday night when the Warriors host the Los Angeles Clippers at Chase Center.