Marc J. Spears: Klay (hamstring) says he expects to feel closer to normal tomorrow.
More on Klay Thompson Injury
Joe Vardon: Klay Thompson took the court just now to warm up, and the assembling Bay Area crowd let him know he’s appreciated. His streak of 120 consecutive playoff games was snapped in Game 3 by a bum hamstring
Connor Letourneau: For what it's worth, Klay Thompson is also listed as questionable tonight. Warriors expect him to play.
Meanwhile, big man Kevon Looney (costal cartilage fracture) might not be done for in this series after all. Thompson’s return was the most foreseeable, given the shooting guard’s durability and stubbornness against missing games. He was straining at Kerr’s and the medical staff’s leash Wednesday, even as he understood their safe-rather-than-sorry approach. “It just sucks missing a Finals game,” Thompson said. “It's the NBA Finals and this is what we work our whole lives for. But I would rather miss one game than an entire series. So, it wasn't the end of the world.”
Mark Medina: Klay on if he feels pain free with his left hamstring: “We’ll see.” But Klay add he’s encouraged with all the progress he’s made after injuring his hamstring in Game 2
Josh Lewenberg: Klay said he knew last night that he would play in Game 4, needed those extra couple days but feels good today and doesn't think he'll be limited. "I just can't wait to get out here tomorrow."
John Gonzalez: Klay Thompson said he wanted to play Game 3. Wasn’t his call. Said he’s good to go for Game 4.
Mark Medina: Steve Kerr said Klay Thompson plans to play tomorrow in Game 4
Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson will return for Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Friday, league sources told Yahoo Sports, after Golden State made the difficult decision to hold him out right before before Wednesday’s Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors. Thompson, who is nursing a left hamstring injury he suffered in Game 2, lobbied management and the coaching staff to let him play.
Thompson was a game-time decision on Wednesday, but the Warriors' staff ultimately decided to hold him out, despite the All-Star swingman pushing to play. "The whole point was to not risk a bigger injury that would keep him out of the rest of the series," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "So that was the decision we made, and I feel very comfortable with it. Never would have forgiven myself if I played him tonight and he had gotten hurt. So you live with the decision you make, you make a wise decision, the wisest one you can, and then you live with it and move forward. "So the good thing is, Klay has done well the last two days; now he has a couple more days to heal, and hopefully he'll be out there on Friday."
A few members of the organization expect Thompson to return for Game 4 on Friday. If he’s healthy and ready to go, he’d be an instant boon. “He’s one of the best two-way players in the history of the league. Just him not being there defensively hurts us as well,” Cook said. “He has a body to him at all times and everybody has to know where he is at all times, so it opens up a lot for Steph and Draymond (Green)’s pick-and-roll and everyone else. We have to learn. We haven’t played without Klay in a while, so it was new. But no excuses. We had our chances.”
Nick Friedell: Kerr is hopeful that with a couple more says rest Klay will be ready for Game 4 on Friday. Kerr said he never would have forgiven himself if Klay injured his hamstring even more and couldn’t finish series.
Connor Letourneau: Klay Thompson won't play Game 3 tonight.
Tim Bontemps: “That’s the gist of it all,” Kerr says, when asked of the possibility of Klay making the injury worse by playing. Says if there is, Klay will not play.
Connor Letourneau: Steve Kerr on what goes into deciding whether Klay Thompson will play tonight: "If there's risk, we would not play him. He got some shots this morning, and got some running on the court, so that's a good sign."
Eric Smith: "If I can be out there, even at 80 per cent, I still think I can be effective..." - Thompson
Melissa Rohlin: Klay Thompson said he’s a game-time decision for tomorrow, but added that it would be hard for him to see himself not playing. pic.twitter.com/MnHFAUAUMq
Nick Friedell: Klay: “It will be a game time decision but I really want to be out there.” Says the pain level has gone down since Sunday night.
Ben Golliver: Warriors’ Steve Kerr on Klay Thompson (hamstring) for Finals Game 3 vs. Raptors: “He says he’s feeling well. He says he’ll be ready to go. We have to determine if that’s a risk. If there’s a risk we’d rather give him the next couple of days to heal. It’s literally day to day.”
Shams Charania: MRI on Golden State Warriors All-Star Klay Thompson confirmed a hamstring strain and he will likely be questionable for Game 3, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Thompson will test body over next two days with hope to play Wednesday night.
An MRI on Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson's left hamstring was delayed because the team arrived back in Oakland later than anticipated Monday morning, so the results won't be known until later in the evening.
Thompson left Sunday night's game in the fourth quarter with left hamstring tightness. Further testing was scheduled to determine the severity of the injury, although Thompson said after the game he expected to play in Wednesday's Game 3. The Warriors' charter carrying players and the coaching staff left Toronto after the game but didn't arrive back in Oakland until after 4 a.m. Pacific Time.
Thompson was scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday, which should help the Warriors better gauge his status for Game 3. What remains unquestioned is that Thompson, who still had a slight limp when leaving Scotiabank Arena on Sunday, will do everything in his power to be available.
Asked for an update on Thompson, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said, “Klay said he'll be fine, but Klay could be half-dead and he would say he would be fine.”
Dr. Rick Celebrini, Golden State’s director of sports medicine and performance, was to spend Monday and Tuesday trying to decipher the severity of Thompson’s tweaked hamstring. When discussing the injury with Thompson, Celebrini is well-aware of his patient’s tendency to downplay the pain he feels.
Golden State Warriors All-Star Klay Thompson, who suffered a left hamstring injury in the fourth quarter of the Warriors’ NBA Finals Game 2 victory Sunday night, told Yahoo Sports that he doesn’t expect to miss any time. “No, I don’t see myself missing Game 3,” Thompson told Yahoo Sports. Thompson led the Warriors with 25 points and carried them in the first half as they evened the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors with a 109-104 victory. “I’ll be fine,” Thompson told Yahoo Sports. “That was a good win for us tonight.”
Mark Medina: I caught up with Klay Thompson on the way out of the arena. Klay about his hamstring: “I’m good. It’s just tight.” Does Klay think he’ll play in Game 3? Klay: “Honestly, it’s hard to say. Thank God we got a couple of days off. But I think I’ll be good to go.”
Mark Berman: Steve Kerr updates Warriors injury situation: Steph Curry (ankle) will play and Klay Thompson (ankle) will warm up and try to play. Says "it's trending in the right direction." Said Klay had an MRI and it's clear. Will "literally" be a game-time decision for Klay. pic.twitter.com/IROPxohCQd
Connor Letourneau: Klay Thompson will warm up and see if he can play. "It's going to be a late call. ... But you guys know Klay. He's going to lobby, and he's going to do everything he can to play." MRI came back clean. Said it's "trending in the right direction."
Golden State Warriors All-Stars Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are "questionable" for Sunday's Game 1 against the Houston Rockets in the NBA's Western Conference semifinals because of right ankle injuries, according to Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
"He's OK," Kerr said Saturday of Thompson. "He and Steph both came in this morning to get some treatment. And I haven't even spoken with [Warriors director of sports medicine and performance] Rick [Celebrini] yet today so we're upstairs watching film and getting ready. We'll see how they're doing [Sunday]. I'm not going to make a definitive statement on whether they'll both play -- let's just call it questionable.”
Kerr acknowledged that Thompson's sprain, which came in the third quarter Friday night, was more severe than initially thought. "It was a significant sprain," Kerr said. "He was limping last night. So as I said, we'll see how he's doing [Sunday]."
Saturday morning, hours after the Warriors won their fifth-straight road playoff game, Klay Thompson’s sprained ankle was still pretty bad, according to sources. Bad enough to put his availability in question for Game 1 against visiting Houston on Sunday? That is certainly on the table. How his ankle responds to treatment over the next 24 hours is what the Warriors are watching closely.
Logan Murdock: Steve Kerr said both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are questionable for Game 1. When asked about @Marcus Thompson’s report that Klay’s ankle was ‘pretty bad’ Kerr joked that reporters have better sources than he does. pic.twitter.com/ABDTgihtUD
Mark Medina: Official word for tonight: Kevin Durant (flu), Klay Thompson (right knee soreness), Andre Iguodala (left toe soreness) and Andrew Bogut are all out tonight vs Pelicans
Mark Medina: Klay Thompson says he’s “good to go” tonight pic.twitter.com/GW33RiSDUi
Mark Medina: Klay Thompson on the rare times he misses games with an injury: "You always want to be out there. It is a rigorous season with 82 games. But you want to be there for your teammates every night and for the fans who pay their hard-earned money to come watch us."
Connor Letourneau: Klay Thompson and Kevon Looney are out tonight. Andre Iguodala is good to go.
Shams Charania: MRI on Golden State Warriors All-Star Klay Thompson's right knee returned clean, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
Golden State Warriors All-Star swingman Klay Thompson will not play Saturday night against the Philadelphia 76ers because of right knee soreness. Thompson is scheduled to have an MRI when the Warriors return to the Bay Area on Sunday. He injured the knee during Thursday night's loss to the Orlando Magic, but is not concerned he will miss an extended amount of time.
"I'm sore but I'll be all right," Thompson told ESPN. "I don't think it's anything serious, but it's definitely better [we] take the right precautions for sure."
Marc J. Spears: Warriors guard Klay Thompson is expected to play tonight after missing a game to illness.
Marc J. Spears: Warriors say Klay Thompson (illness) is questionable for Saturday’s game against the Lakers.
Drew Shiller: Steve Kerr just told @Damon Bruce that Klay Thompson's ankle sprain is nothing serious and that Klay is probable for Wednesday night's game vs the Wizards
Melissa Rohlin: Klay said he will definitely play tomorrow and says he has a pretty high pain tolerance—but still feels pain. “Im not invincible,” he said.
Later, on the postgame podium, Draymond would appraise Klay as “one of the toughest guys if not the toughest guy I’ve ever played with.” Draymond also plays with David West. Perhaps that’s explained by Klay’s zen as much as his grit. He just doesn’t care, except for the things he really cares about. He loves basketball and will tune out everything, even immense pain, in order to play it and play it better. After the game, Klay said, “I didn’t realize how much you use your ankle until you hurt it.” That part of life was off his radar, until it came into focus. That’s Klay’s secret. He optimizes what he wants, and ignores what he doesn’t. The result is a game and life that, as Zaza might say, is true.
Marc J. Spears: Klay Thompson (left lateral leg contusion) is available to play
Connor Letourneau: Klay Thompson will not have a minutes restriction tonight, per a team source.
Connor Letourneau: Klay Thompson has never missed a playoff game. Kerr said that he met with his staff earlier today to put a plan in place for the rotation in case Thompson can't go.
Mark Medina: As @Ramona Shelburne and @Sam Amick noted, strong expectation Klay Thompson will play tonight in Game 2. Wouldn’t be surprised if Klay has no minutes restriction either. But will he have limited impact on court? Can he find the same adrenaline to play off of as he did in Game 1?
Over the last six seasons, the average missed time for an isolated high ankle sprain is roughly 10 games. However the variability is high and a quicker return is possible. For example, earlier this season Indiana’s Myles Turner was able to return to action from a high ankle sprain after just three days and one game lost.
The Warriors have been providing Thompson with non-stop treatment and he is currently listed as questionable. However, even if Thompson is able to play, an injury of this magnitude could negatively impact his ability to make hard cuts and come off of screens. With uncertainty lingering, it seems this is just the latest injury to influence this recurring Finals matchup.
Thompson, who suffered a high left ankle sprain in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against Cleveland on Thursday, is questionable for Game 2 on Sunday. While talking with reporters on Saturday – his right foot in a sneaker and his left wearing a slider with no socks – Thompson was unsure of whether or not he’ll be able to play. “I'm going to do everything I possibly can to play tomorrow,” he said. “It's not good.”
When it comes to NBA iron men, Golden State guard Klay Thompson is on the league’s short list. Since being drafted out of Washington State in 2011, the four-time All-Star has missed just 21 regular-season games out of a possible 558. Come playoff time, he’s even more durable: 100% attendance in 99 games. That streak, however, is in serious jeopardy.
Connor Letourneau: Warriors officially listing Klay Thompson as questionable for Game 2.
Anthony Slater: Klay Thompson on JR Smith's role in his injury: "When I watched the replay, it pissed me off. That's a tough play on the ball, and just to tumble into somebody's legs like that...You gotta move past it, but it's life...It's just a minor setback. I don't think it was intentional."
Marc J. Spears: Warriors guard Klay Thompson (ankle) says he is optimistic he will play in Game 2, "I'm going to do what I possibly can to play." He added that the under cut accidental slip from Cavs guard JR Smith on the play in which he hurt his ankle wasn't intentional but it "pissed me off."
