Thompson turns back the clock

Klay Thompson, son of Bahamian basketball legend Mychal “Sweet Bells” Thompson, is re-discovering his touch, and it’s coming with a trip to the West Coast looming for himself and the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Thompson had his best game of the season on Friday, leading the Heat past the Indiana Pacers, 145-125, at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. He scored 25 points, knocking down 9-for-14 from the floor, including 7-for-12 from three-point land.

The seven treys were the most Thompson had in a game since his days with the Golden State Warriors, and with the West Coast trip facing the Heat at the moment, Thompson will get a reunion of sorts with his former team in short order.

The Heat are on a five-game west trip, taking on the Los Angeles Lakers tonight, the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, and the Warriors on Thursday on the second night of a back-to-back. They end the road trip with games against the Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz.

As for Friday’s game, Thompson put on a shooting clinic, particularly in the third quarter to help the Heat pull away. He knocked down five of his seven three-pointers in a seven-minutes span in the third quarter, leading the Heat to a 103-88 lead after three.

The Heat struggled defensively in the opening quarter, falling behind 42-36 after one. They regrouped in the second and took a 68-61 lead into the half.

Behind Thompson’s hot shooting, the Heat continued to pour it on in the third quarter, and the lead never shrunk to within single digits in the fourth, growing to as large as 25 at one point.

Thompson’s final trey of the night gave the Heat a 98-75 lead with 2:26 remaining in the third quarter. They were never threatened the rest of the way, as the Heat pulled away, getting a strong start to NBA Cup games — games that will determine who are successful in the NBA in-season tournament. Teams play four group-stage games apiece in the NBA Cup Tournament.

Thompson, now 36 and a 16-year veteran, is the downside of his career, but he proved this past weekend that he could still light up the scoreboard and be a factor for the Heat going forward. The Heat won a second straight game with their win over the Pacers, but it came after they dropped four straight to start the season.

Now, they go on the west coast for five games.

As for Thompson, his slow start to the season appears to be over. He was shooting 32 percent from beyond the three-point arc in his first five games with the Heat, and after a 7-for-12 night, he’s up to 38.8 percent three-point shooting.

Also, Thompson is now within 55 three-point shots of matching former Heat guard Ray Allen (2,973) for third-most in NBA history.

“It wasn’t the best start to the season,” said Thompson to reporters. “... to come out here and play with poise and confidence, I knew I was due for a night like this.”

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a game-high 31 points, and had his second triple-double of the season, for the Heat Friday night. Bam Adebayo added 27 points and the Heat opened NBA Cup play in impressive fashion.

Quenton Jackson had 24 points off the bench for the Pacers. Andrew Nembhard added 22, Jarace Walker scored 14 off the bench, and Pascal Siakam and Jay Huff dropped in 13 apiece.

Thompson is averaging 10.7 points and 1.3 rebounds and assists for the Heat this year while shooting 40 percent from the field and 38.8 percent from three-point range.

As mentioned, Thompson and the Heat have games against the Lakers and Clippers, before playing the Warriors on Thursday. Thompson won four titles with the Warriors when he helped form the “Splash Brothers” duo with Warriors’ sharpshooter Stephen Curry.

Curry has the most three-point shots in NBA history with 4,270, James Harden is second with 3,402, and Ray Allen is third with 2,973. Thompson is fourth with 2,918.