The Cavaliers came out with good energy on Sunday night in San Francisco. But there was no matching the electricity pulsating through the gym for the Warriors, who celebrated the return of five-time All-Star Klay Thompson after a 31-month absence.
The sold-out Chase Center crowd erupted when Thompson connected on his first shot of the night – a floater to open the scoring for Golden State – and remained at a playoff pitch for the rest of the game, as the Warriors weathered a late Cavaliers rally to take the 96-82 decision.
Thompson, who hasn’t played since Game 6 of the 2019 Finals against Toronto, battled his way through both the ACL injury that initially sidelined him, and a ruptured Achilles suffered last November before getting the start on Sunday.