Klay Thompson beats teammate Steph Curry to win 3-point contest
Thompson started slow, but he ultimately took advantage. Curry's Golden State Warriors teammate drained all five money balls in the final rack to finish the round with a record-tying 27 points and come away with this year's crown.
First he was an NBA Champion, and now he's a Three-Point Contest champion. #KlayThompsonhttps://t.co/5McwwRdyUL
— GoldenStateWarriors (@warriors) February 14, 2016
.@Klaythompson seals the deal in #FootLockerThree Point Contest https://t.co/bBVyPeQX4p
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 14, 2016
"Just the fact I got to go up against Steph in the finals again," Thompson said, when asked what he'd cherish about this victory the most. "It was like déjà vu. Not gonna lie, I got nervous when he hit his first [seven in the final round], and I didn't think he was going to miss. But it was exciting, just coming back to Oakland [with the title], you know. Back-to-back years for Splash Brothers, it's pretty cool."
Most points in a 3-Point Contest round:
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) February 14, 2016
27 - 2016 #KlayThompson
27 - 2015 #StephenCurry
(money ball rack began in 2014)
#KlayThompson wins! He and #StephenCurry are the first pair of teammates to win consecutive NBA Three-Point Contests.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) February 14, 2016
There's no doubting Curry's greatness as a shooter, and Thompson knows this as well as anyone, because he sees it on a daily basis. He acknowledged the fact that Curry being less than amazing played a part in his victory, despite what ultimately proved to be a record-tying performance.
"You know, he's the best shooter I've ever seen, so this is a rare occurrence that he loses," Thompson said. "So I'm just happy I caught him on an off night."
Here's how good Thompson was in the finals: He had two different streaks of eight consecutive makes. Thompson was 19 for 25 in the final round, 18 for 25 in the first, and adding them together put him at 74 percent on the night.
That's what it took to beat Curry, who set the NBA single-season record with 286 3-pointers last season and is on pace to obliterate that mark this season. He's already at 245, and the Warriors have 30 games remaining.
"At the end of the day, you've got to make shots," Curry said. "Just like in a game."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
