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Klay Thompson played his second preseason game for the Dallas Mavericks on Monday against the LA Clippers. The former Golden State Warriors star finished with 10 points on 3-for-9 shooting, including 3-for-5 from deep in his debut versus the Utah Jazz on Thursday. Basketball fans hoped to see Thompson sustain his performance against the Clippers.
Thompson, though, couldn’t get it done against James Harden and Co. The four-time champ played 21 minutes and went 0-for-9, including 0-for-6 from behind the arc. “Game 6 Klay” had a plus-minus rating of -14, the worst among the starters.
The legendary shooter didn’t have his stroke against the Clippers. He had a couple of open shots that he couldn’t convert. Thompson also contributed three rebounds and one assist, but he had four turnovers.
Following Klay Thompson’s poor first half, Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd started the five-time All-Star in the third quarter. After missing two 3-pointers, Kidd took him out for Quentin Grimes with 7:04 left in the period.
Klay Thompson's stats against the LA Clippers:
Klay Thompson as the No. 1 option on offense didn't go well for Jason Kidd
Jason Kidd’s starting lineup featured Jaden Hardy, P.J. Washington, Dereck Lively II, undrafted rookie Jazian Gortman and Klay Thompson. Kidd went to Thompson as his primary option to put up the points. Hardy played well but mainly acted as a decoy to get “Killa Klay” going.
Hardy's inside forays and the lob threat presented by Lively in pick-and-roll plays helped open the game a bit for Thompson. The former Splash Bro. couldn’t deliver when needed. Kidd gave it one more go in the third quarter before eventually taking out Thompson following back-to-back missed 3-pointers.
In Thompson’s debut for the Mavs, Kidd had Kyrie Irving and Spencer Dinwiddie orchestrating the offense. With the two point guards running the show, the Mavericks had more flow to their game. Thompson had more daylight to shoot and he didn’t force his shots. It wasn’t the case against the Clippers when Kidd made "Killa Klay" the No. 1 option on offense.
