After struggling through the first three games of this year’s NBA Finals, Cleveland Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson finally bounced back with a solid performance in Game 4.
In Games 1, 2, and 3 combined, “Double T,” as Thompson is known, recorded a grand total of eight points, 11 rebounds, and five assists — a far cry from his normal level of productivity, to be sure. However, in Game 4, the former Texas Longhorn stand-out showed up to play. While he only recorded five points, Thompson pulled down 10 big rebounds to go with five assists in his 36 minutes of playing time.
During his post-game media availability, LeBron James touched on Thompson’s bounce-back performance. As most Cavs fans know, Double T’s role in the paint is extremely important. His relentless motor is part of the reason the Cavs are in the position they are, as James astutely pointed out.
Via Chris Fedor of cleveland.com:
“He’s a big piece of our puzzle,” James said of Thompson. “We all know that. He’s been huge for our success the last three years, and they have done a great job of putting him in the game plan and neutralizing what he does best, and that’s offensive rebound and giving us extra possessions. And it’s been very tough on him [in these Finals] so far. But he didn’t get down on himself. He came through when we needed him the most.”
As James said in his interview, Thompson was there when the Cavs needed him most. Now, the champs will have to bring a similar mentality into Oracle Arena on Monday, where they’ll face the Warriors for Game 5 of this epic basketball trilogy at 9:00 p.m.
