Klay Thompson tells The Athletic’s NBA reporter Anthony Slater about the Golden State Warriors’ playoff loss to LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2023 Western Conference semifinals “Heart-wrenching.”
The Warriors lost to the Lakers in six games. This is the first time the Golden State Warriors have failed to reach the NBA Finals since reaching the playoffs during the Steve Kerr era.
“It stung so bad,” Thompson said. “Bad. Because you want to win against the team in the division, you want to beat your hometown, you want to beat your team fan friends, and you obviously want to beat LeBron. We have a deep history with him. Hats off to him. . He’s still here playing at the highest level he can. So, yeah, it stings. Any time you don’t hit your target, that’s motivation, and we had a lot of times. That’s fuel. It’s on your mind all summer long. That question. How could you be better prepared?”
Thompson played in 69 games for the Warriors last season. The four-time champion averaged 21.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 43.6% from the field, 41.2% from beyond the arc and 87.9% from the free throw line. The Warriors have won 44 games and are the sixth seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
The Golden State Warriors defeated the Sacramento Kings in seven games before losing to the Lakers in the first round of the 2023 playoffs. Thompson finished the 2023 playoffs averaging 18.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. In 13 games against the Kings and Lakers, he shot just 38.8% overall and 36.8% from three-point range.
“I learned I’d been bombed. I was tired,” Thompson said. “All my shots in Game 6 were short. They were all on the line. They were just short. Don’t know if it was mental fatigue or physical fatigue. But it happens. The most important thing is, as I get older, I Learning that I have to rely on my teammates and my smarts to score the ball as efficiently as possible.”