Thompson and Devin Booker had been yelling back and forth for much of the game, and Thompson had been held scoreless when Booker was guarding him. With 7:34, Thompson blocked a Booker stepback, and a minute later, Mikal Bridges stole an errant Draymond Green pass and got fouled on his layup attempt. That’s when Booker and Thompson’s trash talk escalated, and when they bumped chests – far away from the actual basketball play – the officials gave them double technical fouls. Bridges them bumped into Thompson as he was walking away, and Thompson’s subsequent shove got him tossed for the first time in his career.

Booker said most of Thompson’s trash talk was repeatedly reminding Booker that he and the Warriors had four rings, but he insisted there were no hard feelings. He told reporters after the game, “I love Klay Thompson. I have for a really long time. But it’s not going to excuse from us being competitive and talking to each other. I’ve always admired his game, how he plays on both ends of the ball. And obviously, the rings speak for themselves.”

Those were the final three technical fouls of the quarter, all of which were assessed within less than four minutes of game action. Green got the first one after making a layup and demanding a foul call with some colorful language. Coach Steve Kerr got another defending Draymond. Chris Paul and DeAndre Ayton each got technicals within thirty seconds of each other, and then the Booker-Thompson dust-up occurred.

The Warrior were down six points when Klay was ejected, but Phoenix went on an 11-0 run after he went to the locker room. Overall, the teams combined for 17 personal fouls and seven technicals, and shot 18 free throws (12 for the Suns). For the season, the Suns and Warriors have each committed 95 fouls (23.75 per game), which is tied for second in the NBA, behind only the Indiana Pacers with 98. The foul frenzy hasn’t hurt the Suns, who are still 4th in the league in fewest points allowed (104.5 per game) but it’s been a constant issue for the Warriors, who are 29th (124.0).

For his part, Kerr told reporters he thought Thompson was pressing too hard in his first October basketball since 2018. “He wants it so badly and he’s trying to force it right now,” said Kerr. “He’s trying too hard. But he’s done that many times, even before the injuries. So I’ll remind him: There are 78 games to go.”

And in those 78 games, the Warriors are going to need Klay to stay in the game past the middle of the 3rd quarter.