Monday 22 April 2019 08:33, UK
Klay Thompson's breakout performance as the Golden State Warriors won Game 4 against the Los Angeles Clippers was "inevitable", according to head coach Steve Kerr.
Thompson scored 27 of his 32 points in the first half as the Warriors sealed a 113-105 victory at the Staples Center, which put them 3-1 up in the Western Conference playoff series.
The All-Star guard had been well below his regular-season average (18.3) as he produced just 13.7 points across the first three games of the series, with 17 in Game 2 his best effort.
"When Klay gets hot it fuels our momentum," Kerr said.
"It didn't surprise me at all.
"He kind of had a quiet first few games in the series so it was only a matter of time until he broke out."
Thompson's slow start to the playoffs was quickly forgotten as he stormed out of the blocks to make 10 of his 14 first-half attempts from the field, including 5-6 from three-point range.
The 29-year-old's first-half surge saw him follow in the footsteps of team-mate Steph Curry to become second player in Warriors history to reach 2,000 career points in the playoffs.
"The ball was just finding me. I didn't do anything special. I was just getting open," Thompson said.
"Once you see a few go in all you need is a little space. When I play within that flow that's when I have huge nights.
"It feels good to get your team-mates up. That's what you play for, you do it together and I can definitely feel it when I've got it going."
Game 5 takes place in Oakland in the early hours of Thursday morning (3:30am).
