NBA Player Power Rankings: Top 10 Players In NBA Finals

NBA Player Power Rankings: Top 10 Players In The NBA Finals

Jun 16, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) shakes hands with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the fourth quarter of game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Warriors won 105-97. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /

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June 1, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) looks on during NBA Finals media day at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors

Position: Shooting Guard
Age: 26 (2/8/1990)
Slash Line: .449/.450/.882
Season Averages: 35.4 MPG, 26.2 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 2.4 APG, 1.1 SPG, 4.5 3PM

One could very easily make the case that Klay Thompson has been the MVP of the 2016 NBA Playoffs. He saved the Golden State Warriors against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and has been its most reliable scoring threat over the course of a full four quarters.

In the 2016 NBA Finals, however, it will be a tale of redemption.

Thompson struggled mightily during the 2016 NBA Finals. Aside from a wonderful Game 2—a loss—and an acceptable Game 1, Thompson failed to score more than 14 points in any game, and tallied single-digit scoring numbers in two.

That type of series simply will not suffice in 2016.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are back at full strength, which means primarily relying upon the role players to step up will not work for Golden State in 2016. Thompson needs to play as well against the Cavaliers as he did against the Warriors, and that’s a very tall task.

It’s also what All-NBA players are expected to do.

Next: Curry or James?