What's Wrong with Klay Thompson?

Generally speaking, the vibes should be pretty good for the Golden State Warriors, but something is wrong with Klay Thompson.

Golden State won Wednesday's Game 5 over the Los Angeles Lakers, 121-106, but Klay was was 3-of-12 from the field. It was on track for a road win in Game 4 before a comedy of errors, including some ill-advised shots from Thompson, doomed the last few minutes.

Despite being down 3-2, the Warriors seem to have figured some things out (including the efficacy of small lineups with Gary Payton II). That just doesn't extend to, you guessed it, Klay.

He had 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting in the Game 2 blowout, but his jumper has consistently betrayed him in every other game this series.

In those four contests, Thompson is averaging 14.8 points on 15.5 shots. He has more turnovers (nine) than assists (eight). On Wednesday alone, he had two turnovers and 10 points on 12 shots.

Over the course of the regular and postseason, Golden State is now 7-14 in games in which Klay had more field-goal attempts than points.

If that total gets to 22 in Game 6, the Warriors will be in dire straits, whether Anthony Davis is available or not (he was wheeled off the floor of Game 5 after taking an inadvertent shot to the head from Kevon Looney).

If it's just a "make or miss league" sort of problem for Klay, it feels like he's due for a breakout.

Beyond the fact that he's a Splash Brother and undoubtedly one of the best shooters of all time, he took 10.6 threes per game and shot 41.2 percent from deep in the regular season. Even after going 2-of-6 on Wednesday, he's hit 38.7 percent of his three-point attempts in the playoffs.

Regression to the mean could be on the way. And it could be vicious for the Lakers.

But the Warriors need to know if it's something more than that.

Over the last three games, a stretch in which Thompson is shooting 33.3 percent from three and 23.1 percent from two, L.A. has done a good job of sticking with Klay through his off-ball movement and crowding his catches.

Wide-open catch-and-shoot opportunities that require nothing but, well, catching and shooting, have been rare. The Lakers are often forcing him off rhythm or into an escape dribble, and the results haven't been great. They've been downright bad when that pressure leads to a foray inside the arc, where, again, he's shooting 23.1 percent.

And while it's understandable that most of Thompson's cuts take him away from the rim—again, he's one of the best three-point shooters ever—it probably wouldn't hurt to have him occasionally heading in the opposite direction.

Thompson has been found for a shot off a basket cut just once in the last three games. He made the layup, and seeing the ball go through the hoop can do a lot for a shooter's psyche.

And that begs the question, is there something going on upstairs that's causing Thompson to struggle?

In answer to a question about turnovers following Game 3, Thompson insisted he'd study the film and play "much better Monday." Things haven't turned around since then, but his coach isn't worried.

"Shooting comes and goes, even for the best," Steve Kerr told reporters while also extolling Thompson's defense on Wednesday. "The great thing is, we know Klay's due for a good shooting night."

He's been through worse stretches than this in his career. With his injury history, we certainly know he's been through more adversity. Few players have ever had more reason to be confident through a shooting slump. So, it's safe to assume he is and trust Kerr's assessment of the situation ahead of a pivotal Game 6.

The Legend of Game 6 Klay may be getting another chapter, regardless of any adjustments from Golden State, but there are still a few things he and the team can do to get him going.

For one thing, a few more actions to get Thompson going downhill with a chance to score inside wouldn't hurt. Despite how Klay often makes it look, it's not easy to score on an NBA defense immediately after running full speed away from the basket.

When he is flying out to the three-point line, he might have to be a bit more selective on those catches too. If an L.A. defender is there on the catch, moving the ball may be smarter than putting it on the deck and dribbling into a contested two.

And while Kevon Looney's minutes have been limited by an illness, the team might be wise to mirror his playing time more closely with Thompson's.

Small-ball with GPII has been tricky for the Lakers to figure out, but Thompson could use some of Looney's sturdy screens to give him a little extra time on the perimeter.

For the entire series, Thompson is still 14-of-30 on catch-and-shoot three-point attempts. Getting him open opportunities from deep, ones that don't require much extra work from Klay, could help him break out.

Given all we know about Thompson, though, the likeliest answer to the question in the headline is simply that nothing's wrong with Klay.

He's a shooter. Shooters go through slumps. And we have years of evidence, including playoff evidence, to suggest this slump won't last forever.