Klay Thompson could not have asked for a better start to this new chapter of his career. With all eyes on him after the disappointing year he had last season, the sharpshooter delivered an insane debut performance to bag his first win in the Mavs uniform. Sure enough, he looked like the Klay of old who hit 14 threes in a game and scored a 60-piece in three quarters. And there was one moment that truly highlighted his shooting prowess as he saved his teammate Luka Doncic from massive embarrassment.

During his 22-point outing, there was a play in the fourth quarter where Luka passed the ball to Klay on the three-point line and immediately began running to his side of the floor celebrating long before the sharpshooter attempted the shot. Well, that could have ended in embarrassment for the Slovenian Sensation had Klay missed. But the four-time champ did not disappoint and took one crab dribble before sending the ball through the net. And Klay was relieved he did not let his teammate down. “I heard Luka was running down the floor though, but I’m happy I made it. Made him not look stupid.”

Moreover, it was that strategy of dribbling the ball once before letting it fly that helped him gain composure in that moment, “When you’re getting ready to shoot the ball, and you’re that wide open, sometimes you overthink it so it’s nice to just take a crab dribble, and that just gives you a lot of rhythm.” Well, Klay pulled out all the moves in his bag as he went six of ten from the three-point line, and his jumper looked smooth as ever. And he also impressed with his defense by getting three steals and even stripping the ball from Victor Wembanyama’s hands at one point. While Klay looked confident in his debut, that was not how he was feeling before the game.

Klay Thompson admits to being ‘anxious’ before Record Breaking debut

During the postgame interview, Klay revealed his emotions before the game, “Well, the feelings were a lot of nerves, anxiousness.” Obviously, there was a lot of hype around his debut because, in his last NBA game, he scored 0 points for the Warriors. But he quickly found his groove after his first bucket. “After a few minutes, when you see one go through, you feel great.” Sure enough, Klay was happy with the way his debut went. He added, “It’s just one game in October, but it feels good to get the first one out of the way.”

Moreover, he has already etched his name in Mavs history in his very first game as his six three-pointers set a new franchise record for a debutant. And Klay truly appreciated this accomplishment. He admitted, “Setting a record is always a great feeling and something I’ll never take for granted.” Holding multiple records, including most threes in a game and most points in a quarter, Klay Thompson is no stranger to shattering records. Hopefully, he will continue this form for the entire season.