The Warriors have been unbeatable since Klay Thompson fulfilled a weird autograph request
The Golden State Warriors are unbeatable right now. Literally.
The team America loves to hate has been perfect in the NBA Playoffs, racking up a 12-0 record through the first three rounds in barnstorming its way to a third consecutive NBA Finals.
All this despite one of Golden State's vaunted superstars, Klay Thompson, slumping his way through the entire post-season. But it's possible that Thompson, wittingly or not, traded his on-court talents for something more powerful. Much more powerful.
Now, a warning. This is about to get weird. Cosmic, even. But it's backed up by facts, so what choice do we have?
Down the rabbit hole we go.
Just how bad has Thompson been on the court this postseason? Well, compared to the regular season, he's scoring eight fewer points per game, taking four fewer shots per game and his shooting percentages are down across the board. A thorough recent Bleacher Report piece takes a deep look at the drop-off.
Now on to the more mystical piece of this puzzle.
NBA stars like Thompson are frequently approached for autographs, of course. But at a signing session in mid-March, Thompson was presented with a most odd request indeed: A toaster.
At the time, the Warriors had just lost three games in a row. The squad looked out of sorts. Fan anxiety was on the rise.
Then came Thompson's signing session, and the jolly fan-slash-Reddit-user who presented him with a toaster to autograph.
Thompson signed that toaster. His reaction was priceless, but he signed the toaster.
Here are the photos from the signing that made the Reddit post from "RDollaz" hit the top of the site in March.
OK. Now. Are you ready?
Here comes the crazy part.
SINCE THOMPSON SIGNED THAT TOASTER, THE WARRIORS HAVE PLAYED 27 GAMES WITH HIM IN THE LINEUP.
And ...
THEY HAVE WON ALL 27 OF THOSE GAMES.
And ...
THOMPSON SAT OUT ONE GAME DURING THIS STRETCH; THE WARRIORS LOST THAT ONE GAME.
DUDE. Whoa.
Golden State immediately reeled off 14 consecutive wins after Thompson signed the toaster. Then they lost their second-to-last regular-season game, to Utah -- but Thompson sat that game out to rest. Then the Warriors won their final regular season game.
And now, as we mentioned atop this post, they're 12-0 so far in this year's playoffs with the NBA Finals set to tip off.
Boom! Add 'em up. That makes 27-and-oh with Thompson in the lineup since he signed that toaster.
Now come the Finals, tipping off June 1. LeBron James awaits, and we all know what he did to the Warriors last June.
This suuure would be an excellent time for Thompson to find his shooting touch. His scoring ability is explosive weapon Golden State hasn't missed too badly through three postseason rounds so far -- but it would be a lovely asset to have against LeBron and company.
But then again, maybe it doesn't even matter.
If Thompson's toaster magic can hold up for just four more games, the Warriors will find themselves with their second championship in three years.
Sam Laird is Mashable's Senior Sports Reporter. He covers the wide, weird world of sports from all angles -- as well as occasional other topics -- from Mashable's San Francisco bureau. Before joining Mashable in November 2011, his freelance work appeared in publications including the New York Times, New York Times Magazine, Slam, and East Bay Express. Sam is a graduate of UC Berkeley and UC Santa Cruz, and basketball and burritos take up most of his spare time. Follow him on Twitter @samcmlaird.
