Klay Thompson reveals why LeBron James was the toughest player to defend in his career originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Klay Thompson might be mostly known for his three-point shooting, but he was the prime example of a 3-and-D player during his time with the Golden State Warriors. He is among the most impressive players who played that kind of role because he reached the pinnacle of both facets of that position.
With his four championships, Thompson can say that he is one of the best 3-and-D wings to ever play the game. Since he played that role, he had to face a lot of tough matchups. However, one stands out among them, and that is LeBron James, the rival the Warriors often faced in those Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Klay Thompson highlights how tough it is to play against LeBron James
While Thompson is playing for the Dallas Mavericks now, he is still known for his time in Golden State. That is warranted because the Warriors fully relied on his partnership with Stephen Curry to win those four championships that were won between 2015 and 2022.
Since Curry is not known to be the best defender, he had to have a partner who could do it at a high level. Thankfully for him, he got to play with Thompson, who was the perfect fit because of his similar perimeter shooting and elite defense.
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During those years, Thompson regularly defended the best player on the opposing team. They played against the Cavaliers quite often; he had the unenviable task of defending against LeBron. While the four-time Finals MVP still had good games, it was tougher because he had Thompson guarding him at times.
"We saw him for 4 straight Finals, and I haven’t seen anyone control the game as well as he does. He can do everything on the court. He has no weaknesses," Thompson said on a stream with PlaqueBoyMax.
Going against LeBron is always a tough matchup for anyone. Considering Thompson had to play against him all the time, it became a familiar assignment. However, that did not mean that it got easier with all the reps he had to do.
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