On Thursday evening, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr sent shockwaves throughout the NBA landscape when it was announced that shooting guard Klay Thompson would be coming off the bench for the team’s game against the Utah Jazz in favor of rookie guard Brandin Podziemski. The Thompson news was first reported by Anthony Slater of The Athletic on X, the social media platform formerly referred to as Twitter, and was perhaps a culmination of the former All-Star’s struggles for the Warriors so far this year.
In fact, so rare of an occasion is it for Thompson to come off of the bench that this is the first time since 2012, his rookie year, that he won’t be in the Warriors starting lineup, per a post from StatMuse on X.
Indeed, Klay Thompson has been a stalwart of some of the most lethal starting lineups in NBA history over the years for the Warriors, beginning when the team first made the playoffs back in 2013 and continuing all the way up into the modern era, when Thompson contributed significantly to Golden State’s most recent NBA title run back in 2022.
However, recently, Thompson’s averages have all plummeted, and the star has also shown an increased propensity to try to launch his way out of shooting slumps as opposed to getting his teammates involved. On Wednesday, Thompson made a backbreaking mental mistake that may have cost his team a chance to beat the Los Angeles Clippers.
In any case, history was made with Kerr’s decision.
