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“Klay Thompson has a 41.7 3 point percentage because of his neonatal doctor”: How Dr. Kaempf helped the $70 million Warriors star become one of the greatest shooters in NBA history

Ashish Priyadarshi
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Klay Thompson

Klay Thompson may play second fiddle to Stephen Curry in three point shooting, but he may have the better form, all due to a neonatal doctor.

The Warriors star is currently gearing up for game two of the Finals, hoping to bounce back from a somewhat disappointing showing in game one.

Klay only had 15 points on only 6 of 14 shooting from the field and three of seven from the three point line. While it initially didn’t look like Klay’s bad shooting night would matter, the Warriors simply collapsed.

Curry’s hot shooting had been carrying them through the third quarter, but in the fourth, they simply couldn’t buy a bucket. Golden State was outscored 40-16 in the fourth quarter, blowing a double digit lead and losing home court advantage.

Tonight, Klay will simply have to be better if the Warriors want to fight back and tie the series at one game a piece. If they lose, a 2-0 hole will be very difficult to climb out of on the road.

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Klay Thompson credited his picturesque jumpshot to a neonatal doctor

Klay’s injuries may have him slightly rusty, but we know that the Warriors guard is one of the best shooters in the game, if not the second best behind his teammate Steph Curry, of course.

While Klay’s shot may not be as good as Curry’s, he definitely appears to have the better form. However, the story of how he got that form may surprise you.

Klay credits a neonatal doctor, Dr. Joseph Kaempf, for building his form to be the way that it is. Dr. Kaempf himself never had quite the playing career, but Kaempf started to coach middle school kids, and that’s where he met Klay. Klay and Kaempf’s son used to play together on the same middle school-aged team.

Klay gives Dr. Kaempf an immense out of credit for his form, but Kaempf refuses to take too much of the credit, claiming anyone could’ve trained Klay with the talent he had.

“I credit a lot of my shooting ability to Dr. Kaempf,” Thompson acknowledged. “He did a great job with me when I was young.”

“The local grocer could have coached him and he would’ve been great,” Kaempf replied back. Kaempf also talked about how Klay used to be one of the most modest kids he ever worked with.

“When I coached him, he never complained, never called attention to himself,” Kaempf recalled. “Never said, ‘My dad’s an NBA athlete.’ But he was competitive and driven. “He didn’t start every game — although he should have, by every objective measure. Klay never had an issue with that. He is the most modest young man. He never called attention to himself.”

Also Read: “Kawhi Leonard told me my layup package was a**”: Jack Harlow reveals how the $176 million Clippers superstar roasted his basketball skills during New Balance meet-up

About the author

Ashish Priyadarshi

Ashish Priyadarshi

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Ashish Priyadarshi is The SportsRush's content manager and editor. Ashish freelanced for 1 year in the NFL division before taking on an editorial role in the company. He then tacked on managing content while adding on a writing role in the NBA division. Ashish has been closely following the NFL and NBA since the 2012 season when the Patriots lost the Super Bowl and Derrick Rose was at the height of his powers. Since then, Ashish has focused on honing his knowledge for both leagues in, even writing crossover pieces. In his free time, Ashish is an avid basketball player, he loves to watch movies and TV shows, immersing himself in the cinematic world. Ashish studies computer science and data science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and would love to mesh his love for sports with his technical skills.

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