SAN FRANCISCO – The Golden State Warriors gave Klay Thompson a warm welcome, but at the end of the day it was business as usual as “both teams wanted to win”.
On Nov 12, Stephen Curry scored 37 points as the Warriors spoiled Thompson’s return to the Bay Area with a 120-117 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round of the NBA (National Basketball Association) Cup.
Thompson – a beloved member of four NBA championship-winning Golden State teams before joining Dallas in July – received a rapturous welcome in his first game back in San Francisco.
The 34-year-old was given a guard of honour by cheering Golden State staff upon his arrival at the Chase Centre, before fans wearing nautical caps roared their appreciation for the player who famously used to commute to work in his fishing boat.
But despite delighting the home crowd with six three-pointers in a 22-point haul, Thompson was upstaged by former teammate Curry who produced a stunning fourth-quarter performance to drag the Warriors over the line.
The Mavericks looked poised to snatch victory after battling into a six-point lead at 114-108 with just over three minutes remaining.
But Curry then took over with 10 unanswered points – including one sensational step-back three from 28 feet – to put Golden State into a 118-114 lead, before adding two late free throws to seal the win.
“There was a lot of emotion but both teams wanted to win,” Curry told TNT television.
“It was a playoff-like atmosphere, with great players making great plays. That’s why we love the competition.”
Thompson, meanwhile, said it had felt “surreal” lining up against his former teammate.
“We’ve guarded each other plenty of times in practice for Team USA or All-Star Games, but a competitive NBA game – it was pretty surreal,” he said.
“It hurts to be on the other side of one of his flurries. Guy got hot at the end and made some ridiculous shots. It sucks.”
In other games, Joel Embiid made his long-awaited first appearance of the season but was unable to prevent the Philadelphia 76ers from sliding to a 111-99 home defeat by the New York Knicks.
He missed the first six games of the season as the team managed his rehabilitation from a left knee injury, and was suspended for three games after a locker room altercation with a journalist.
The Cameroonian’s lack of game time was apparent in a sluggish performance that saw him finish with 13 points, five assists and three rebounds.
With Embiid not firing on all cylinders, the Knicks dominated for long periods, leading for almost the entirety of the game before pulling away in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Sixers 33-24.
Karl-Anthony Towns impressed with 21 points, 13 rebounds and six assists while O.G. Anunoby led with 24 points.
In Boston, the Atlanta Hawks pulled off the shock of the opening round, defeating the in-form Celtics 117-116 despite missing injured talisman Trae Young.
A game which saw the lead change hands 14 times looked to have swung decisively in favour of the home side midway through the third quarter as the Celtics raced into a 15-point lead.
But Dyson Daniels led a late rally which included 11 points in the fourth quarter, and Onyeka Okongwu tipped in the winning basket with 6.1sec left on the clock to snatch victory.
Daniels led Atlanta’s scorers with 28 points while Larry Nance Jr. added 19.
Boston coach Joe Mazzulla admitted that Atlanta “outplayed us in every facet of the game”.
“They beat us on all the margins and they deserved to win,” he added.
Elsewhere, the Phoenix Suns downed the Utah Jazz 120-112 while the Milwaukee Bucks beat Toronto 99-85.
The NBA Cup was introduced last season as a way of providing a knockout competition in the early months of the league season.
All 30 league teams are drawn into six groups of five, with eight teams advancing to single-elimination knockout rounds, with the semi-finals and final taking place in Las Vegas on Dec 14-17. AFP
