When the Golden State Warriors knocked off the Toronto Raptors in Game 2 of the 2019 NBA Finals, the excitement came with a bit of concern as another star had suffered an injury. This time, it was shooting guard Klay Thompson, who left the game with an apparent hamstring ailment during the fourth quarter.
The Warriors have listed Thompson as questionable for Wednesday night’s Game 3, while they’ve ruled Kevin Durant out.
While Thompson’s injury was revealed as hamstring tightness, he was seen limping back to the locker room and also limping leaving the arena. Fortunately, as Terez Owens showed, Thompson looked a bit better in a video of the Warriors players in what appears to be the airport.
Klay Thompson Walking Fine After Game 2 Injury #NBAFinals #Warriors
Thompson is set to have an MRI on Monday, as ESPN’s Nick Friedell reported, and while the team called it hamstring tightness, there didn’t appear to be a massive amount of concern.
Klay Thompson Injury: Warriors Guard Says He’ll Be Fine; He’s Listed as Questionable
While it’s too early to lock in Thompson for Game 3, when asked about if he’d play in the next matchup with the Raptors, he replied “oh yeah,” as Friedell and ESPN revealed. Beyond that, Warriors coach Steve Kerr also said that Thompson said he’ll be fine, but admitted to not knowing how things will play out as time goes on.
“Klay said he’ll be fine, but Klay can be half-dead and he’d say he’s [fine]. We’ll see,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after Game 2. “He pulled his hamstring. He thinks it’s minor — I don’t know what that means going forward.”
It’s a tough blow for both the team and Thompson, as they’re still without Kevin Durant, who’s dealing with a strained calf. Golden State just got DeMarcus Cousins back from injury at the start of the NBA Finals, and he was able to log 28 minutes during the team’s 109-104 victory on Sunday.
Prior to the injury, Thompson was playing exceptionally well, scoring 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting while knocking down 4-of-6 from beyond the arc in 32 minutes. He also tacked on five rebounds and five assists. Even while being forced to miss the end of the game due to injury, Thompson was still the Warriors’ leading scorer in the win.
Warriors vs. Raptors NBA Finals Outlook
With Thompson’s status up in the air for Game 3 currently, it could make the situation involving Cousins, Andre Iguodala and Durant even more noteworthy. While both Cousins and Iguodala should be out there and ready to roll for the next game, Durant could return in one of the next two games, assuming he’s able to take big steps forward.
There’s nothing concrete that points to Durant’s timeline, but if he were to remain sidelined and Thompson was unable to go, the offensive load would fall heavily on Cousins and Stephen Curry. Iguodala and Draymond Green would also continue to log heavy minutes, with the former likely seeing the biggest boost of the bunch. Beyond that, Quinn Cook, who played 21 minutes and scored nine points in Game 2, would also be incredibly busy next game.
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Klay Thompson Questionable: Guard Walks Without Limp in New Video