Getty Klay Thompson reacts to a play in a game against the Toronto Raptors.
Golden State Warriors fans may end up having to wait a bit longer to see Klay Thompson return to the court — and even longer to see him at full strength.
The team gave a significant update on the progress that Thompson has been making as he returns from an Achilles injury that wiped out his season. While the team had been optimistic that he could be in the starting lineup on opening night, it now appears that may not be the case.
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Rehab May Take Longer Than Expected
Warriors general manager Bob Myers provided an update on Thompson’s progress this week, saying it’s too early to tell whether the All-Star guard will be ready in time to start the season in the fall. Myers had an even more distressing update, saying that it could nearly the entire season for him to return to his prior form.
“What we’re focused on is when Klay will be Klay, and I don’t know if that will be January, February or March. It’s too early to say,” Myers said, via Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Klay expects the Warriors to make a run next season 🏆
As Simmons noted, the typical recovery time from an Achilles tear like the one Thompson suffered is a full year, which would put his return to the court sometime around November. Thompson suffered the injury during a pick-up basketball game before the season started, meaning he has not set foot on an NBA court in nearly two full years. Thompson suffered an ACL tear in the 2019 NBA Finals, an injury that kept him out of the next season.
Thompson Making Progress
Though it remains unclear exactly when Thompson will be able to rejoin his Warriors teammates on the court, he has provided a number of updates about the hard work he’s putting in to get back. Thompson said at a March press conference that the process has been arduous, and he has concerns about being able to return to the All-Star form that helped the Warriors reach the NBA Finals five straight times.
“It’s way harder than any basketball game I’ve ever had to play. Way harder than any conditioning drill or practice. The mental toll is not very fun, you always guess if you’re going to be the same player you once were so you have those naturally thoughts, but you can’t let those overtake you and you’ve got to realize this is not unique just to me so many athletes have been through this.
The hard work also earned the praise of Golden State’s general manager, who said earlier this year that Thompson has been incredibly focused on his goal to come back.
“He has a focus that I’ve never seen before,” Myers said, via the San Francisco Chronicle’s Connor Letourneau. “He has a purpose, and he’s attacking the rehab.”
Five years ago today, Klay Thompson set the playoff record with 11 threes in a game 🔥
The game misses the other Splash Brother.
The Warriors have been looking forward to the return of Thompson and the chance to get back into title contention. The team has missed the playoffs in both years he has been absent, falling this year in the newly instituted play-in tournament.
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