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One of the highlights of recent weeks in the NBA has been the long-awaited return of Klay Thompson, who spent more than two years away from the court due to major injuries. The Golden State Warriors star remained sidelined during the 2020-21 season with a ruptured right Achilles tendon after spending the entire 2019-20 campaign healing a torn ACL in his left knee.
Thompson helped the Warriors win three NBA championships in five Finals appearances with his clutch outside shooting, dependable defense and team-first attitude. “The emotion that will come with his return is because of the pain with the rehab,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers explained.
“The reason there will be so much emotion around Klay and his return is because it was so hard for him to experience it, for the fans to miss him and our organization to try to move on without him. It’s all really hard. So when it comes back around, you reminisce about the journey of the whole thing.”
Myers continued, “People say, ‘Why doesn’t a player sit on the bench more or why aren’t they around?’ I would say Klay did a good job of that, but I think it’s physically painful for him to watch a game and not play,” Myers said. “There’s a visceral pain to him having to watch a game and not play.”
By being around the team more, Thompson encouraged and mentored his teammates frequently from the sidelines. Warriors forward Kevon Looney explained: “He [Thompson] held us accountable to let us know that we’re taking this for granted. He’s out there hurt and rehabbing just to get back on the court. That shows you his passion, and how much he misses the game.”
Warriors player development coach Chris DeMarco, who works with Thompson on individual drills, added: “He loves to win. Whether it’s shooting games, one-on-one, five-on-five or whatever it is, there’s going to be that joy. But there’s competitiveness, especially, when he wins. If he does lose, he’s going to be pissed off about it.”
The final word belongs to Golden State coach Steve Kerr: “He’s earned this comeback. He’s put the work in.”
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Catch the following NBA games live on ESPN this week…
All times CAT
02:45: Teams TBC – LIVE on ESPN 2
05:05: Milwaukee Bucks v New York Knicks – LIVE on ESPN 2
Sunday 30 January
20:00: Atlanta Hawks v Los Angeles Lakers – LIVE on ESPN
22:30: Chicago Bulls v Portland Trail Blazers – LIVE on ESPN
