Quinn Cook remembers his favorite Klay moment from dynasty

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Klay Thompson typically wasn't the Warriors' vocal leader during their run of five straight NBA Finals from 2015 through 2019, so when he said something everyone paid attention.

During a recent episode of Dubs Talk, former Warriors guard Quinn Cook was asked by host Grant Liffmann to recall his favorite memory involving Thompson, and it just happened to be a moment where the three-time champion got the attention of his teammates by using his voice.

"I can remember Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals in 2018, when we were down 3-2 [to the Houston Rockets], coming back [to Oracle Arena] and we were down a lot in the first quarter," Cook said. "And obviously, through the game, we have our vocal leaders, Draymond [Green], [Andre Iguodala], Kevin [Durant], who might yell at us just to give us some energy or whatever. Steph [Curry] and Klay, they were very even-keeled when it came to stuff like that, obviously, when we were going good.

"So we're losing by maybe 17, 18 in the first and it was the timeout going into the second quarter and Klay got after it. Not got after us, but just like 'Come on, we're better than this. We're the Warriors. We're champions.' Just kind of like, 'Oh, Klay's talking.' "

Cook's memory is pretty good. Facing elimination at Oracle Arena, the Warriors trailed the Rockets 39-22 at the end of the first quarter.

As Cook recalls, the Warriors opened the second quarter by using an "elevator" play that former Warriors center David West introduced to coach Steve Kerr.

"We ran that play the first play of the second quarter and Klay hit [a 3-pointer] and looked at the bench [and said] 'Come on,' " Cook said. "And I can remember it just gave Oracle this surge. And we ended up winning that game by like 30 or 40, something crazy. But we were down. We were down like 16, 18 in the first quarter, and I'll always remember that."

The Warriors erased the first-quarter deficit and throttled the Rockets the rest of the night, outscoring them 93-47 over the final three quarters. They went on to win by 29, 115-86, to force a Game 7 back in Houston. Klay finished with a game-high 35 points on 13-of-23 shooting from the field and 9-of-14 from 3-point range.

The Warriors would go on to beat the Rockets in the deciding Game 7 and then they swept the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals.

RELATED: Cook identifies key factors that separate Steph, LeBron from others

Thompson reportedly is expected to make his return to the Warriors' lineup against the Cavs on Sunday at Chase Center after missing the last 31 months following a torn left ACL and then a torn right Achilles.

Cook surely will be watching Thompson's return Sunday and will be rooting for his former teammate.

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