The uniform was different, but other than that Klay Thompson delivered a familiar performance on Thursday evening. Plays his first game for them outsiderThompson hit six 3-pointers and scored 22 points in 26 minutes in a win over San Antonio, writes ESPN's Tim MacMahon. In addition to giving the defending Western Conference champions another outside shooting threat, Thompson showed he can impact the game in other ways, collecting seven rebounds and three steals.

“Great debut” he said. “It's only one game in October but it feels good to have the first game behind us. … Just a lot of excitement, really just an awesome feeling. And you rarely experience something for the first time.”

Last night was the first time Thompson played alongside him Luka Doncicwho missed the entire pre-season due to a bruised left calf. The chemistry between them seemed to be right right away, as four of Thompson's three-pointers came directly after passes from Doncic.

“What an incredible talent” Thompson said. “I mean, that doesn't make any sense at all because what we were taught growing up to be the best basketball player is that you have to jump the highest and run the fastest, but somehow Luka defies that. He plays at his own pace and manipulates the game better than I've ever seen anyone do. And it’s great to be a recipient of that and get some great looks.”

There's more from Dallas:

• Although he finished with 28 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, Doncic felt the effects of sitting out the preseason, according to Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. He shot just 8 of 21 that night and felt like he played “horribly,” even though he nearly shot a triple-double. “I told someone I was rusty the whole first half.” Doncic said. “It kind of opened up in the third quarter. The legs were back. It felt great just to be out there and play basketball.”
• trainer Jason Kidd According to Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal (subscription required), he didn't want to reveal his starting center during his pregame meeting with reporters, but he decided to do so Daniel Gafford and use Dereck Lively II from the bank. Both were productive, as Gafford had nine points, six rebounds and two assists in 18 minutes, while Lively had 15 points and 10 rebounds and matched his career high with six assists in 27 minutes. “It’s an opportunity to start Gaff here and we will look somewhere in the future to start D Live.” Kidd said. “But what I love about D Live coming off the bench is his energy, and that's something that's contagious. When you look at a team, there's going to be nights where we might run out of energy, but D Live, as we've talked about throughout the preseason, we plug into it and guys, you know, re-energize or feed on this energy. He has a lot of responsibility for this second group.”
• With a new three-year, $18 million extension in hand, Jaden Hardy Looks to be an important part of the Mavericks' second unit, Afseth added. Kidd said Hardy has improved his playmaking skills to complement his outside shooting as he enters his third NBA season.