PHOENIX — A feisty Klay Thompson received his first career ejection Tuesday night after getting into it with Devin Booker in a chippy third quarter of the Warriors’ 134-105 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
Thompson and Booker had been jawing at each other throughout the third quarter before they were slapped with double technical fouls after they bumped chests when play stopped. Thompson then shoved Suns forward Mikal Bridges as he headed toward the Warriors bench. Stephen Curry and assistant coach Chris DeMarco had to hold back an incensed Thompson when the five-time All-Star was assessed a second technical foul and tossed with 6:31 left in the quarter.
It was Thompson’s first career ejection in 759 regular season and postseason games.
But Thompson’s fire didn’t stop even after getting sent to the locker room. As he walked off the court, the four-time champion continued to chirp at the Suns bench and waved his hand, pointing to where he’d put his four rings.
Thompson, though, struggled in his 19 minutes with Booker as his primary defender. He went 1-for-8 from the field and missed all five of his 3-point attempts, finishing with just two points.
Thompson has been doing his best to trust the process as the Warriors are being extra cautious and limiting his minutes because of his injury history. He said Tuesday after shootaround that he’s still working to overcome the mental hurdles after suffering back-to-back major injuries that sidelined him for two and a half years. But Thompson’s patience appears to be running thin.
“Klay’s frustrated that he can’t play more right now,” coach Steve Kerr said before the game. “He’d like to have his minutes bumped up but the reality is as you get a little older, as a player when you’ve had some injuries is you gotta be a little more patient.”
That annoyance, paired with another poor performance and plenty of talking by Booker, boiled over to the Warriors’ second loss of the season.
After Thompson was ejected, the Suns closed out the third quarter with a 22-9 run and led by 19 points entering the final frame. Golden State was able to recover a bit in the fourth before the score got out of hand.
Emotions ran high after halftime. Draymond Green received a technical foul two minutes into the second half after expressing frustration that he didn’t get the foul call on his previous basket. Moments later, Kerr received one of his own while he was defending Green.
Then, in separate incidents, the Suns’ Paul and Deandre Ayton each received techs. Thompson’s two techs and Booker’s were the fifth, sixth and seventh of the quarter.
“They’re a really good team. We respect them, so sometimes that brings out a bit of emotion,” Suns coach Monty Williams said in a TNT interview after the third quarter.
Booker finished with 34 points on 10-of-19 shooting. He also contributed seven assists and two rebounds in 35 minutes.
Curry led the Warriors with 21 points. Green added 14 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
The Warriors (2-2) will host the Miami Heat Thursday before embarking on a five-stop road trip out east.
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