Klay Thompson had the best 3-of-16 shooting night ever

Klay Thompson shot just 3-of-16 from the field in the Warriors’ Game 1 NBA Finals win over the Cavaliers on Thursday. He didn’t make any of his five three-point attempts, scored only six points, and missed shots a three-time All-Star and former three-point champion would salivate over.

But Thompson is regarded as the second-best shooting guard in the league, not only because of his unerring three-point stroke, but because of his innate ability to shut down his assignment on the defensive end. His campaign for First Team All-Defense was on full display in Game 1, as he guarded each one of Cleveland’s three All-Stars to help lead Golden State to a 22-point victory.

“I play hard on both sides of the ball, I play as hard as I can,” Thompson said, according to NBA TV. “And even when I’m missing shots, that’s one thing I can control: my defense. So I try to be effective even if it looks like I’m ineffective out there.”

On the first play of the game, Cleveland attempted to target Thompson by forcing him to switch onto the bigger, taller Kevin Love. The 6’7” guard with a 7’0” wingspan made life difficult for the All-Star power forward:

In a similar scenario later in the first quarter, Thompson forced Love to shoot a baseline turnaround jump shot that came up short. In all, the Cavs’ stretch 4 finished the night 0-of-4 when guarded by Thompson.

That inability to attack Thompson wasn’t unique to just Love, but to everyone Thompson defended.

Kyrie Irving’s blend of devastating ball-handling and supreme shooting makes him one of the most lethal isolation scorers in the league. But even Irving had no answer for Thompson, who held him to just 1-of-6 shooting on the night.

Just a minute after he put the clamps on Love to open the first quarter, Thompson absorbed a flurry of Irving crossovers before forcing a heavily contested layup:

In fact, had it not been for a prayer of a three-point shot, Irving would have put up a dud against Thompson:

Thompson’s remaining shots defended were split between LeBron James and J.R. Smith. Here’s how Smith fared after his open corner three was swiped away. (Notice how Thompson steals the energy out of Cleveland’s bench.):

And here’s what LeBron did:

Thompson scored only six points on an uncharacteristic 18.8 percent shooting night, but he was still able to outscore his assignment on a better shooting clip. The supreme two-way guard held his man to just three points on 1-of-12 shooting, or 8.3 percent from the field, in Game 1, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

Ten of those 12 shots were contested by Thompson. The others were open misses.

Thompson’s proficiency and versatility on the defensive end is another layer to the Warriors vaunted defensive scheme. He guarded four different players — all capable scorers — on Thursday and gave up just one bless-up basket.

In a series where the Cavaliers need Irving to be his greatest self, Thompson’s defensive presence temporarily put a fork in their plans. Even if the weather isn’t perfect, and even if he’s not having a toaster game, the Warriors’ guard will always give his effort on the defensive end.

And if the Cavaliers can’t figure him out, they could have bigger problems than getting a basket this series.