Klay Thompson 'something special to watch' as Warriors topple Thunder with 26 3-pointers

SAN FRANCISCO — Warriors fans rose to their feet when Klay Thompson checked out of the game for the final time.

The packed house was treated to a classic Thompson performance. Without Splash Brother Stephen Curry (left leg) beside him, Thompson played the lead role in transforming Chase Center into a theater of 3-pointers.

The Thunder (25-28) was buried beneath all of those buckets, losing to the Warriors 141-114 Monday night. It was the Thunder’s most lopsided loss of the season.

Thompson scored a game-high 42 points on sizzling 3-point shooting (12-of-16). He had 27 points by halftime, and the break didn’t slow him down.

Thompson swished his first 3-point attempt of the second half, and the Warriors rolled on.

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“When he gets in the zone like that, it’s something special to watch,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.

Thompson, in the first full season of his injury comeback, deserved every bit of the standing ovation.

For the Thunder, seeing Thompson drain 3-pointers is a nightmare the franchise and fanbase knows all too well.

“Some of the early ones were on me,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said, explaining how the Warriors’ offense puts defenses in dilemmas.

In his two games against the Thunder this season, Thompson is shooting a staggering 18-of-30 (60%) from deep.

As Thompson proved Monday, one Splash Brother is better than none.

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Warriors beat Thunder at math

The Warriors (26-of-50) outscored the Thunder (11-of-32) 78-33 from behind the arc. Thompson, by himself, made one more 3-pointer than the Thunder.

That’s a giant math problem for the Thunder, and one that’s unsolvable when the Warriors shoot an unsustainable 52% from deep.

“Every team knows what they run,” Thunder guard Josh Giddey said. “It’s just, who can stop them? You’re not going to outshoot this team, you’re not gonna outscore this team. You have to do it on the defensive end.”

Three Warriors — Thompson, Jordan Poole and Donte DiVincenzo — combined to make 21 3-pointers at a 62% rate.

Golden State’s 26 3-pointers were the most by a Thunder opponent this season.

OKC, meanwhile, shot 11-of-32 (34%) from 3-point range.

The Thunder had a big advantage from the free-throw line — 21 attempts to the Warriors’ seven — but three is greater than one.

Eight of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s team-high 20 points came at the foul line. He was perfect from the stripe, but after an all-around hot start, SGA struggled to get going. He shot 6-of-16.

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Tre Mann stays aggressive

Thunder guard Tre Mann had 10 points on 10 attempts in his first 10 minutes.

That’s a whole lot of Tre Mann, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. He profiles as a high-octane sixth man, and he has to get shots up (and in) if he’s going to stick in the NBA.

Mann’s game is an outlier in the Thunder’s offense. He’s the fastball a knuckleball pitcher tries to sneak by.

He’s more of a self-creator than a flow facilitator, but the Thunder offense sometimes needs that kind of verve. It just has to lead to more production.

In 107 NBA games, Mann is shooting 39% from the field and 34% from 3-point range. He’s a 22-year-old still searching for his footing.

“I give him a lot of credit,” Daigneault said. “I don’t think this season has gone the way he imagined coming in. He’s had minutes get decreased, he had a little G League stint, and at the end of the day he’s fighting right now, and doing so the right way.”

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Thunder’s losing streak to Warriors

It’s been a while since the Thunder beat the Warriors.

Since Nov. 25, 2019, to be exact.

Dennis Schröder was the Thunder’s leading scorer that night. Glenn Robinson III and Ky Bowman had 25 and 24 points for the league-worst Warriors, who were back atop the NBA two seasons later.

The Warriors have won the last eight games in the series, including the first two this season.

Next up is a March 7 meeting in Oklahoma City.

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Thunder tip-ins

● Thunder guard Lu Dort (hamstring) missed his fifth straight game. It’s an obvious statement, but the Thunder clearly misses his defense. Daigneault ruled him out for Tuesday night against the Lakers.

● It was Bruce Lee Night in San Francisco. Thunder rookie Jalen Williams has a Bruce Lee tattoo on his right leg.

● Jalen Williams and Jaylin Williams made the Thunder’s first two baskets.

● Steve Kerr called timeout after the Thunder got off to a 9-2 lead. OKC won the fourth quarter 37-31, but was bludgeoned in the second and third quarters.

● Former Thunder guard Ty Jerome checked in for the Warriors at the four-minute mark in the first quarter. Jerome was inactive when the Warriors were in OKC, but he’s expected to play more in Curry’s absence.

● The Warriors PA announcer mistakenly confused Thunder guard Tre Mann for Clippers guard Terance Mann. Give the PA guy a pass. He had his hands full with Jalen and Jaylin Williams.

● The Warriors have cracked the Aaron Wiggins code. Maybe it’s because they have their own A. Wiggins. When Aaron Wiggins starts, the Thunder is 0-2 against the Warriors and 8-0 against the rest of the league.

● Wiggins certainly wasn’t at fault Monday. He was the Thunder’s best offensive player, scoring 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting.

● SGA (10), Wiggins (10) and Mann (10) combined for 30 of the Thunder’s first 46 points.

● The Thunder was outscored 29-16 in the second quarter. It was OKC’s lowest-scoring second quarter of the season.

● Josh Giddey had 15 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Lines like that have become routine for the second-year guard.

● Thunder rookie Ousmane Dieng was assigned to the G League OKC Blue on Monday.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Klay Thompson 'something special to watch' as Warriors beat Thunder