In their most recent NBA regular season game, the Golden State Warriors lost 88-140 to the Boston Celtics on the road, losing by a full 52 points. The result was undoubtedly a heavy blow to the Warriors, especially at halftime, when they trailed by 44 points, the largest halftime margin in franchise history.
The Warriors' loss with their core player Paul.
There is a direct correlation between performance. Paul's play in this game can be described as aberration, with only 2 points on 1-of-6 shooting, in addition to 3 rebounds and 7 assists. For a perennial All-Star player, such a performance is obviously not satisfactory. And this game was also the second game of Thompson's return to the starting lineup, and the Warriors suffered such a painful loss, which was somewhat embarrassing for Thompson himself.
Thompson's performance in this game was not great, but his performance was relatively acceptable given the overall slump of the team. In 12 minutes of playing time, he made 2 of 4 shots, including 1 of 3 three-pointers, and had 6 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist.
In addition to Thompson, the Warriors' other starters have struggled to be satisfied. In 14 minutes of playing time, although Green made 2 shots, he only scored 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists; In 20 minutes, Kuminga shot only 2 of 9, 0 of 2 three-pointers, and only 6 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists; In 19 minutes, Moody made 5 of 9 shots, but only 1 of 4 three-pointers, scoring 11 points and 4 boards. The entire starting lineup combined for just 33 points, while opposite the Celtics' Jaylen Brown scored 29 points alone, and he played only 22 minutes.
Looking at this season's performance, when Thompson played the starter, the Warriors' record was 23-26; And when he played off the bench, the record was 4-1. Such a comparison of data has undoubtedly sparked a discussion about whether Thompson is better suited to play as a substitute. Of course, this discussion is not to say that Thompson is not a good player, but rather a reflection on the overall tactical layout of the team and the characteristics of individual players. After all, basketball is a team sport, and each player needs to find the best position for him in order to maximize his or her value.
The Warriors' loss in this game is undoubtedly one.
A wake-up call to remind them of the need to re-examine their tactical layout and the use of their players. As for Thompson's position, the coaching staff may need to think more deeply and adjust in order to better play Thompson's individual ability, and at the same time, the strength of the whole team can be improved.