All-Star Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors has quite a list of accolades to his credit. In spite of his prolific numbers, however, he seems to play fourth fiddle on a team laden with All-Stars such as two-time MVP, multiple All-Star and backcourt mate/fellow “Splash Brother” Stephen Curry; former MVP, multiple All-Star/scoring champion Kevin Durant; and former Defensive Player of the Year and multiple All-NBA Defensive Team member Draymond Green. On top of all of that star power, in the offseason, the Warriors added multiple All-Star big man DeMarcus Cousins. They were able to add a player of Cousins’ caliber as his market was not as robust as it would have been given he was injured.
Kevin Durant is widely regarded as no less than the second best player in the NBA (immediately behind Los Angeles Laker LeBron James). Stephen Curry is to date the first and only unanimous MVP pick in NBA history. While not putting up huge numbers, Draymond Green has a big personality that finds him in front of the camera quite often.
This brings us to Klay Thompson. Klay has created quite an impressive resume thus far in his NBA career. All that he has done is:
Become the first player to score 60 points in less than 30 minutes of action; establish an NBA record with 14 made three-pointers in a single regular season game; establish an NBA record with 11 made three-pointers in a single playoff game, and establish an NBA record with 37 points scored in a single quarter. Additionally, Thompson has been a gold medal-winning member of the USA teams that won the 2014 FIBA World Championship, as well as playing an integral role on the gold medal winning 2016 Men’s Olympic Team.
These are some significant feats to have to one’s credit, and Klay Thompson alone has all of these records. He doesn’t get overlooked, but perhaps if accomplishing these goals with teammates that were lesser lights, Thompson would receive greater notoriety. With free agency on the horizon, should he decide to take his talents elsewhere, maybe he will catapult to the front of the line, thus creating magnificent record-setting moments and garnering greater recognition in the process.
Klay Thompson is soft-spoken and laid-back, but his game speaks loudly. Maybe when everybody wanna talk, they will remember to include Klay in their conversation.