Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Klay Thompson put up 32 points in the Warriors’ Game 5 win, passing a legend on the NBA’s all-time playoff scoring list along the way.
Klay Thompson is known as an all-time great shooter but the man is more than that, he’s a bucket-getter. Over the course of his career, he’s averaged 19.5 points per game with less than half of those points coming from beyond the arc. His playoff average drops only slightly to 19.3, with 16 30-point postseason games in his career.
His 16th 30-point game came as the Warriors eliminated the Mavericks in Game 5. His 32 points were a game-high, coming on 12-of-25 from the field and 8-of-16 from beyond the arc. That explosion not only helped the Warriors advance back to the NBA Finals, it also gave him 2,689 postseason points for his career, passing Bill Russell for No. 40 on the all-time postseason scoring list.
Who else could Klay Thompson pass on the all-time NBA playoff scoring list?
With the Warriors advancing to the Finals, Thompson will almost certainly further up the list. He trails Russell Westbrook by just 38 points and Ray Allen by 60, both of which seem fairly easily within reach. Depending on how he plays and how long the series lasts he could also pass Patrick Ewing (124 points), Robert Parish (131) and Charles Barkley (144).
Thompson is also No. 29 on the all-time NBA Finals scoring list and will likely pass Kevin McHale (48 points), Julius Erving (53), Bill Sharman (60) and Cliff Hagan (62) to push into the top 25. The most Thompson has ever scored in a previous NBA Finals appearance was 137 points in the seven-game loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. If he were able to replicate that this year he’d also Frank Ramsey but land just short of Wilt Chamberlain and Scottie Pippen.
Regardless of where he lands, let’s remember Thompson as a lot more than just a shooter — he’s one of the greatest scorers in playoff history.