Klay Thompson won the NBA free throw title this season shooting 92.7 percent, just half a percent better than Warriors teammate Steph Curry.
Curry was quick to point out, however, that Thompson only made 127 free throws (of 137) while he sank 299 (of 324), which was 172 more shots than his Splash Brother.
“I’m going to see if they rewrite the rules,” Curry said jokingly Monday during practice before Tuesday’s NBA Play-In Tournament game against the Sacramento Kings. “I don’t know what 125 free throws is, what that qualification is, but [Klay] I did it.
“I had no idea until [Warriors senior vice president of communications] Raymonde [Ridder] told me today. I knew I was up there percentage-wise, almost the whole year. I think [Damian Lillard] was up there too. But I had no idea Klay wasn’t eligible until the last game, and he made all five, so.”
Curry has worn the league’s free throw crown four times in his 15-year NBA career, most recently during the 2017-18 season with 92.1 percent. Certainly, he knew he would finish the season near the top.
Thompson, meanwhile, finished as the league’s leading free-throw shooter for the first time in his 13-year career. He wouldn’t have won it without his 5-for-5 performance from the line Sunday in Golden State’s 123-116 win over the Utah Jazz at Chase Center.
And, like Curry, Thompson didn’t know much about the race until recently, when he found out he had won.
“[Klay] “I had no idea either,” Curry said. “He said, ‘Oh, that’s cool,’ and that was the whole conversation there. He didn’t even realize he was getting a little plaque or a trophy or something.
“I introduced Jordan [Poole] with his when he got it [in 2021-22]. I guess Klay missed this whole ceremony because he had no idea there was a trophy for the statistical leader. So the trophy was a surprise for him.”
Curry, while excited for his teammate, made it clear he wants to win the title.
“No,” Curry said wryly of the consolation he found in a warrior winning the free-throw crown. “I hate losing. Absolutely not.
“But I guess I’m extremely proud of my teammate, yes.”
So, Curry is a little salty about losing the free throw race to Thompson, but he still has three more titles in his back pocket.
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