Klay Thompson experienced a déjà vu moment early during Monday’s 130-108 victory over the Washington Wizards.
After he knocked down an incredible seven three-pointers in the first quarter, the Dallas Mavericks’ guard said that amazing accomplishment reminded him of another great moment in his illustrious 14-year career.
On Jan. 23, 2015, against the Sacramento Kings while he was playing for the Golden State Warriors, Thompson drilled a whopping nine three-pointers in the first quarter. It’s the most triples any player has converted in one quarter in NBA history, and Thompson acknowledged that he “absolutely” thought of that historic occasion against the Kings when he was slicing and dicing his way through the Wizards’ defense.
“You do something like that (against the Wizards) it reminds you that there’s greatness still within you,” Thompson said. “It’s obviously harder to conjure up nightly after a decade of so much basketball.
“But I love to use this quote: ‘Be at your best when your best is needed,’ and I know I have another level to reach and we have so much basketball ahead of us. So, it’s definitely a confidence builder and something I can lean on going into the rest of the season.”
Thompson nailed 7-of-10 shots from downtown in the first quarter against the Wizards, who he personally outscored in the opening quarter, 21-16. For the night, 
Thompson tallied a game-high 23 points and was 8-of-15 from the field, including 7-of-12 from beyond the three-point arc.
The eye-popping performance by Thompson came after he had just 19 points on 6-of-16 shooting in the previous three games.
“That’s vintage Klay right there,” Mavs forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper said. “I told him on the bench: ‘That’s the Klay I know.’
“(He’s one of the) all-time three-point shooters right there, one of the best.”
Thompson said “that is crazy” he was able to drain seven three-pointers in one quarter approximately 10 years after he drained nine three-pointers in one quarter. And when a reporter asked him how does it feel to be so locked in that he was able to accomplish such an astonishing feat on the NBA level, Thompson said:
“It feels great at any level, really. It feels great at 24-Hour Fitness, it feels good at D-III basketball, playing in the Euro League, wherever. It’s a step that any great athlete or artist, entertainer, tries to get into.
“There’s a reason it’s rare, because it’s so hard to do all the time. But when you do get into that mode you try and remember what you did and replicate that as much as possible. The one thing I’ve learned is you can’t force those great nights. You have to let them happen.”
Well, that great night happened for Thompson – again – on Monday.
Here are the takeaways from the Mavs’ 22-point win over the Wizards.
*Mavs forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper had one of those nights against the Wizards he’ll never forget. The second-year veteran from Marquette finished the game with a career-high tying 20 points and five rebounds in just 25 minutes off the bench. Prosper was 7-of-11 from the field, including 2-of-4 from behind the three-point line. The only other time Prosper scored 20 points in his NBA career was during his rookie year on Dec. 22, 2023 against the Houston Rockets.
*Center Daniel Gafford continues to tear through opposing defenses like a hungry person in a buffet line. Over the past seven games, Gafford is averaging 18.4 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game. With centers Dereck Lively II (right ankle stress fracture), Maxi Kleber (fractured right foot) and Dwight Powell (right hip strain) all on the injury list, the bulk of the action in the middle of the Mavs’ lineup is coming from Gafford. Against the Wizards, Gafford collected 18 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, and was 8-of-13 from the floor. He also has at least one blocked shot in 19 straight games, which is the NBA’s second-longest active streak behind the 38 from San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama.
*Monday’s game was indeed an offensive explosion game for the Mavs. They had 41 points after the first quarter, 73 points at the half, 101 points after three quarters, and 130 points for the game. It was the sixth time this season the Mavs have scored at least 130 points in a game, and they are a perfect 6-0 this season when scoring that many points in a game. Overall, the Mavs shot 53.3 percent from the field (49-of-92) and 44.4 percent from behind the three-point stripe (20-of-45). And the ball was hopping around the court as the Mavs had 39 assists on their 49 made field goals.
X: @DwainPrice
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