Klay Thompson was relieved to have ‘exorcised the demons’ of 12 months ago by helping the Dallas Mavericks edge closer to a place in the playoffs.
Thompson poured in 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting as the Mavs beat the Sacramento Kings 120-106 to set up a meeting with the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. The winner will clinch the eighth seed in the NBA Western Conference.
Next stop, Memphis. @KlayThompson // #MFFL pic.twitter.com/SnF5MhIAq9
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) April 17, 2025
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Redemption for Thompson
There was an element of redemption for Thompson, who when playing on the same court last season went 0-10 in his final game for the Golden State Warriors in their defeat to the Kings.
“It did feel good to exorcise those demons in here,” the 35-year-old told ESPN.
“I wasn’t going to define myself off one bad shooting night. I mean, I’ve had some of the greatest shooting nights in the history of the game. So even someone in my caliber can go 0-for. … I try to not even think about that, but at times you do because you’re human. But you just keep going out there and do what you love.”
He added: “I’m still alive. I’m excited. I get to go to Memphis. It was really fun tonight because you could just be fully immersed in the experience, and we’ve had a tumultuous season, to say the least. The injury bug has struck us like I’ve never seen before, but we’re still here playing postseason basketball.”
Davis – we wanted to get the win for Klay
Anthony Davis, who finished with 27 points in a brilliant display, was delighted for his team-mate.
He said: “We all watch basketball, and we know how tough it was for him losing here the last time as a Warrior. The way he played tonight, you can tell it was a lot of emotion for him and wanted to get this win. We wanted to get the win for him, so I’m glad he played well and glad we got the win.”
