Klay Thompson (USA)
26/01/2015
George Eddy's International Show
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Wilt, Kobe, Michael and Klay

PARIS (George Eddy's International Show) - Klay Thompson on Friday put on a show for the ages by scoring 37 points in one quarter with 100% shooting against the Sacramento Kings to squash the NBA record of 33 points that was held by George Gervin since 1978 and equalled by Carmelo Anthony in 2008.

We already knew that the Golden State Warriors are the best team in the NBA so far this season and that the "Splash Brothers", Thompson and Stephen Curry, might be the best guard tandem EVER in the history of the league.

But now we also know that the team has TWO franchise players instead of one and a really rosy future! 

Curry holds the NBA record for three-pointers made in a season and Thompson holds the record for points in a quarter.

Both shooters are sons of former NBA players who had fine careers but it looks like their sons will largely surpass their fathers and leave a lasting stamp on the league.

Thompson and Curry, world champions with the USA in Spain last summer, truly like each other because they both had similar paths to the NBA after being underrated out of high school.  They worked incessantly on their shooting and Klay's dad used to tell his son "your jump shot will take you a long way".  It's already taken him farther than expected!

The incredible complementarity between Curry - who is a mix of  Bob Cousy and Pete Maravich and who forces the defense to crowd around him because he's so dangerous - and Klay, a catch and shoot phenom who added some intelligent drives to his repertoire this season, makes the Warriors uniquely difficult to defend. 

Their run-and-gun style based on quickness and great fundamentals makes us think of Mike D'Antoni's Phoenix Suns when Steve Nash won two MVP trophies in a row in 2005 and 2006. 

The key is that both stars keep their egos in check and share the ball and the glory while looking for the best shot and this adds up to team success.

It's interesting to note some similarities concerning Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game, Kobe Bryant's 81 point game and Thompson's 37 point quarter. All three are historical exploits that came in the winter during meaningless regular season games against weak opponents which drew little national attention... before the games but which became all-time landmarks after the games!

In the game in which he hit the century mark, Wilt's biggest quarter was 31 points in the fourth on 12 of 21 shooting as his teammates tried to give him the ball on each possession. Kobe scored 28 in the fourth, while Klay put up his 37 points in less than 10 minutes in the third, making 13 of 13 overall and 9 of 9 from three-point range.

Neither Klay nor his teammates could believe their eyes and the genuine delight you could read on Curry's face with each made shot was beautiful to see. No jealousy, just admiration for a humble teammate who doesn't talk a lot but lets his game do the talking for him!

Michael Jordan scored 69 points in 50 minutes in 1990 but Steve Kerr said he had never seen Jordan "in the zone" for a quarter like Klay Thompson was. 

I remember being in Chicago in 1992 and commentating Jordan's incredible 35-point first half against the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals - the famous "shrug" game - with a then Finals record six three-pointers made. Klay made 9 of 9 three pointers in one quarter!

We can safely say that this performance will be THE lasting moment of this NBA season bar none. 

As a former three-point specialist as a player, I will always remember the way Klay planted his feet so effortlessly and the instinctive quickness of his release from any and all spots on the court.  It's a once-in-a-lifetime feeling for a shooter when everything comes beautifully together and you don't have to think, you just let yourself play and fire away!

It's almost a shame that Klay didn't play more in the fourth quarter. He finished with a personal record of 52 points but as he said after the game "my father's gonna tell me I shoulda had 60!"

George Eddy

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George Eddy

George Eddy

George Eddy, a former pro player and coach in France, has been covering basketball for Canal Plus TV since 1985. He is probably the only commentator in the world to have announced so many Olympics, NBA games, FIBA events and even Super Bowls over the last 29 years. The International Show will bring you his perspective on the NBA and its ever-growing international contingent.