Klay Thompson buries Warriors play-in nightmare as Mavericks shock the world

Despite all the noise surrounding the organization at the moment, the Dallas Mavericks came into Wednesday night's play-in game versus the Sacramento Kings with something to prove, as the Mavericks put together a spirited defensive effort en route to a 120-106 victory over the Kings. The Mavericks outscored the Kings 44-19 in the second quarter, as Dallas' two-big lineup stood up well defensively and the Mavericks were able to get great dribble penetration against Sacramento's defense on the other end.

Anthony Davis led Dallas with 27 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks, though Davis didn't have the most efficient night shooting the rock and he was hardly the galvanizing force that really helped Dallas establish control in the second quarter. Davis ended up having a great two-way performance by the end of the game, of course, but Brandon Williams and Klay Thompson helped kickstart Dallas' offense more than anyone.

Williams scored 17 points in only 18 minutes after coming into this game as questionable, as he was extremely efficient in the way he got those buckets and also chipped in five assists. However, neither he or Davis contributed to winning this game anymore than Thompson did, as Thompson making multiple tough 3-pointers in that second quarter really put Sacramento's defense in shambles.

Thompson's redemption erases memories of last season's disaster

This wasn't just an ordinary play-in game for Thompson, as he was playing in this exact same 9-10 play-in game versus the Kings one year ago to the day with the Golden State Warriors. Thompson infamously went 0-10 from the field in that game on the road and the Warriors were subsequently removed from postseason contention.

That game obviously ended up being Thompson's last game as a Warrior, and as storied of a tenure in Golden State as Thompson had, his performance in that contest was a terrible last game to end on. Thompson was getting ridiculed by NBA fans online after the Warriors season ended, and his performance left such a sour taste in some fans' mouth that plenty of Mavericks fans were skeptical Thompson would fall victim to the pressure of avenging his play-in blunder from last season against the same team and in the same situation this year.

However, that couldn't have been further from the truth, as Thompson got scorching hot from outside after starting 0-2 in this game. Thompson made four straight 3-pointers in the second quarter, most of which were tough looks where he was running hard off dribble handoffs. Thompson's demeanor was clear from the get-go, and he had multiple tough finishes off cuts and in transition in the second half after his shooting opened up spacing for him in the first.

Ultimately, Thompson finished with 23 points on 8-11 shooting from the field and 5-7 shooting from downtown, which is a stark contrast to his stat line from last season in this game. While the 9-10 game in the Western Conference between the Warriors and Kings last season was arguably more high stakes compared to this one, considering both of those teams had playoff-caliber records at the time of the game, Thompson redeeming himself fully from that game can't be discounted here.

Thompson heard all the noise and came back this season in the exact same game being one year older and in a precarious situation given Dallas' decision to trade Luka Doncic, but he's one of the greatest 3-and-D players to ever touch a basketball and was determined to not let another blunder versus the Kings in the play-in dominate the discussion in the media.

In a postgame interview with Scott Van Pelt of ESPN, Thompson remarked, "It did feel good to exercise those demons here. Man!" Van Pelt didn't even ask Thompson about his rough play-in game last season, but Thompson said that impromptu at the end of the interview, as he clearly feels relieved to have overcome his past woes in the most redeemable way possible.

We'll see if Thompson and the Mavericks can continue their momentum in the Play-In Tournament when they take on the Memphis Grizzlies this Friday, as Dallas will be fighting for the eighth seed and a chance to take on the 68-win Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.