Klay Thompson counting down the days till ‘basketball tryouts’ at offseason workout

During a lifting session at an offseason workout, Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson is counting down the days till “basketball tryouts.”

When the new NBA season tips off on Dec. 22, it will have been eight months since the Golden State Warriors laced up for live game action. For Klay Thompson, the layoff will have been even longer.

Since injuring his knee in game six of the 2019 NBA Finals, the five-time NBA All-Star has slowly been working his way back to the court. Throughout the offseason, Thompson has been sharing glimpses of his rehab and workout sessions.

On Friday, the sharpshooting wing shared a post on Instagram from a recent trip to the gym. While lifting weights, Thompson was preparing for the start of the NBA season. In the caption, Thompson was counting down the days till “basketball tryouts.”

Via @klaythompson on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHRXTJrMflG/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

 

After getting cleared to train without restrictions, Thompson was one of the key members in attendance at Golden State’s voluntary offseason minicamp in San Francisco.

Along with his work at Chase Center, Thompson has been getting up shots in Southern California over the offseason. During his rehab, the Washington State product released a short documentary chronicling his journey back to the court.

Before making his long-awaited return to Steve Kerr’s rotation, Thompson will reunite with Steph Curry, Draymond Green and the rest of his teammates at Golden State’s preseason training camp on Dec. 1,

Klay Thompson makes return to Warriors practice for first time since suffering knee injury

For the first time since suffering a knee injury in the 2019 NBA Finals, Klay Thompson made his return to the court at Warriors practice.

For the first time in 15 months, Klay Thompson is back on the court at practice for the Golden State Warriors. The five-time All-Star shooting guard was kept out of the entire 2019-20 season with a torn ACL he suffered in the 2019 NBA Finals.

Thompson was absent from the first practice at Golden State’s voluntary offseason minicamp as he finished the NBA’s testing protocol. On Friday, the sharpshooting wing made his long-awaited return to Golden State’s training ground.

Over Golden State’s extended offseason, Thompson has been working out in Southern California. Prior to the start of offseason minicamp, Thompson was training at Chase Center with Golden State’s assistant coach Chris DeMarco. Friday served as his first chance to join the court with his Warriors teammates.

The Golden State Warriors Twitter account shared a photo of Thompson getting some shots up inside “The Dubble.”

Via @warriors on Twitter:

In a conference call with Bay Area media, Steve Kerr called Thompson’s return “a sight for sore eyes.” The Golden State Warriors coach said day one was “a good first step” for Thompson.

Via Warriors Sound Cloud:

Number one, it was great to see him — a sight for sore eyes… It’s been a long time coming.

It was great to have him out on the floor, in the locker room. Just his presence alone gave us a jolt of energy and excitement. And then, practice went well. This is the first practice coming off an ACL injury and a year and a half absence, so I didn’t expect him to be in top shape, in top form — and he was not, but he moved well, and it’s a good first step.

Watch a video of Thompson going through drills inside The Dubble via @warriors on Twitter:

Despite Thompson’s appearance at practice, he will have to wait for a reunion with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. Thompson’s fellow Splash Brother and Green are listed as doubtful for Golden State’s voluntary minicamp due to family reasons.

Thompson and his teammates will continue working out at San Francisco’s Chase Center until Oct. 6.

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Mychal Thompson says Klay is ‘fully healthy’ and practicing at ‘full speed’ in offseason workouts

Mychal Thompson provided an update for Klay’s recovery, saying the Golden State Warriors shooting guard is practicing at “full speed.”

While a small handful of teams are still busy with the NBA playoffs inside the Orlando Bubble, the Golden State Warriors are already preparing for next season.

After his injury from the 2019 NBA Finals held Klay Thompson out of the entire 2019-20 season, the sharpshooting guard has been working towards his long-awaited return to Steve Kerr’s rotation. In June, the guard was medically cleared to train without restriction on his surgically repaired knee.

During Golden State’s extended offseason, the three-time champion has been working out in Southern California. On Sunday, his father, Mychal Thompson, provided an update on his offseason training. In an interview with Amin Elhassan and Jason Jackson on Sirius XM’s NBA Radio, Thompson said his son is “fully healthy” and practicing at “full speed.”

Via @SiriusXMNBA on Twitter:

He’s doing great, man. He’s playing, going full speed, and is back to being a basketball player fully healthy. So, he’s feeling good. And I’ve been watching him work out, and I’ll tell you one thing, crazy to say, but his shot looks even better, and which should be expected because that’s all you could do for so long is just go out and shoot, shoot, shoot until you are fully healthy, until you get that full clearance, but he is ready to go. If the season were to start at a normal time, he’d be out there with Steph and the boys again…

Steve Kerr has come up and watched him work out and watched him scrimmage. So yeah, they’re back to playing, he’s back to playing and doing all the natural things — moving laterally like he did before the surgery…

Once the Warriors are cleared to host in-market group workouts during the offseason, Thompson will be able to join Steph Curry, Draymond Green and the rest of his Golden State teammates on the practice floor for the first time in months.

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Having Thompson fully healthy in the offseason’s early stages will give him more time to work with Golden State’s new arrivals Andrew Wiggins, Eric Paschall and Marquese Chriss.

Getting their five-time All-Star shooting guard back healthy is a significant box the Golden State Warriors need to check off before making their climb back into the playoff picture in 2021.

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3 takeaways from Klay Thompson’s ‘Above The Waves’ documentary

What did we learn from Klay Thompson’s documentary?

After missing 65 games for the Golden State Warriors in the 2019-20 season, Klay Thompson gave an inside look into his journey back to the court. The Golden State Warriors shooting guard released a six-minute short documentary detailing his ACL surgery rehab.

Along with Thompson’s partner Kaiser Permanente, the film was created by Translation, and directed by Floyd Russ with his creative production partner Tool of North America.

The documentary chronicles Thompson’s recovery from the moment he suffered his injury in game six of the 2019 NBA Finals. The five-time All-Star discusses his injury, the steps in his rehab and his thoughts on the future of the Golden State Warriors dynasty run.

Watch “Above The Waves” via YouTube:

After watching Above The Waves, here are three takeaways we learned from Thompson’s documentary.

Klay Thompson releases short documentary with inside look into his knee injury rehab

Watch Klay Thompson’s short documentary that chronicles his journey while rehabbing his injured knee.

Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson gave fans a rare behind the scenes look into the injury rehab of an NBA All-Star.

The short documentary “Above The Waves” chronicles Thompson’s journey back to the court after suffering a torn ACL in the 2019 NBA Finals. 

After a montage of Thompson’s start in the league, the film fast forwards to the moment he injured his knee. The Splash Brother said he felt his knee shift when the injury occurred. 

The six-minute and 13-second documentary covers Thompson meeting with doctors, working out with physical trainers and the “psychological hurdles” of rehab.  

Along with snippets from game six of the 2019 NBA Finals, Thompson is the primary voice in the film, with his father Mychal chiming in throughout. 

The documentary concludes with the statement, “Train the mind. The body will follow.” running across the screen.

Watch Above The Waves via Thompson’s partner Kaiser Permanente on YouTube

After ripping off 30 points in the first 30 minutes of game six of the NBA Finals, Thompson landed awkwardly after being fouled on a fast break with 2:22 remaining in the third quarter. The five-time All-Star was able to drill a pair of free-throw attempts before heading to the locker room. However, he missed the rest of the game as the Toronto Raptors were crowned champions in Oracle Arena. 

Before the NBA went on hold with 17 games remaining, the Warriors officially ruled Thompson out for the remainder of the 2019-20 season. 

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Klay Thompson debuts new trailer for documentary about his comeback from injury

Klay Thompson is joining the documentary game with a film chronicling his comeback from injury.

With the success of the ESPN’s 30 for 30 series “The Last Dance,” one member of the Golden State Warriors is joining the documentary game. Klay Thompson recently dropped a trailer for a film that will chronicle his return from injury.

Although the NBA season has been on hold for over a month due to the coronavirus pandemic, it’s been even longer since Thompson suited up for the Golden State Warriors. The five-time All-Star injured his knee in game six of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors.

Thompson racked up 30 points on 8-of-12 shooting with four triples against the Raptors before he suffered a torn ACL midway through the third quarter. The Warriors couldn’t overcome Thompson’s absence, dropping game six to give Toronto the 2019 championship.

Thompson discusses his injury, the game six loss and his recovery in the trailer for “Above The Waves.”

Watch the trailer for his rehab documentary via @KlayThompson on Twitter:

Before the schedule was paused with 17 games remaining, the Warriors ruled Thompson out for the rest of the 2019-20 season. Without basketball, watching the Golden State guard in a documentary might be the next best thing.

The streaming premiere of “Above The Waves” is slated to air on May 6.

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Mychal Thompson says Klay wants to retire with the Warriors alongside Steph Curry

According to his father Mychal Thompson, Klay wants to retire as a member of the Golden State Warriors alongside Stephen Curry.

In 2009, the Golden State Warriors selected Stephen Curry in the NBA draft, two years later, they added another shooter named Klay Thompson in the lottery. Over the next eight years, the duo of Curry and Thompson formed the iconic duo known as the Splash Brothers.

Accomplishments like All-Star nods, Most Valuable Player trophies, Three-Point Contest champions, All-NBA Teams, All-Defensive Teams and championship banners have all spawned from the tandem of Curry and Thompson.

While the NBA is on pause due to the coronavirus pandemic, the parents of the legendary Bay Area basketball pairing linked up on the “Raising Fame” podcast. Mychal and Juli Thompson joined Dell and Sonya Curry on their podcast to talk about the relationship between their sons.

According to the former first overall pick, his son wants to retire as a member of the Golden State Warriors alongside Curry one day.

Klay loves playing with Steph. He respects him so much. He talks about him all the time about how hard he works and how dedicated he is to the game and to his family. He’s said it to me in private, and he loves playing with Steph. He wants to retire as a Warrior, not in another 10 years. He wants to go into the Hall of Fame along with Steph. That’s how close he feels to him and how honored he is to play with him. They’ve formed a special bond.

Via the Raising Fame Podcast:

After leading Golden State to the past five NBA Finals, Curry and Thompson have yet to link up on the court in the 2019-20 season due to injuries. Curry returned from his hand injury to the Warriors for just one game before the NBA went on hiatus due to COVID-19. Thompson has been ruled out for the remainder of the season from the knee injury he suffered in the 2019 Finals.

The Splash Brothers will have to wait for the 2020-21 season to continue to build their Hall of Fame candidacy.

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Atlanta’s Trae Young has high praise for Klay Thompson’s defense

Trae Young listed Klay Thompson as one of his top-three defenders in the NBA.

While the NBA is on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, players across the league are turning to social media to fill their time. Whether it’s question and answer segments, watching old highlights, or discussing video games, the NBA hiatus has turned players from the court to their phones.

On Monday night, Atlanta’s phenom sharpshooter Trae Young spend time on Twitter doing a question and answer period with his followers. The first-time All-Star answered questions about his music, movies and his time at Oklahoma.

Young was asked about his top-three defensive players in the NBA and mentioned a member of the Golden State Warriors. The former lottery pick named Klay Thompson as one of his best defenders along with Kawhi Leonard and Jrue Holiday.

Via @TheTraeYoung on Twitter:

Before getting injuring his knee in the 2019 NBA Finals, Thompson was named to the NBA Second-Team All-Defensive Team.

In Young’s first dance with Golden State in his rookie season, he was held to four points on 2-of-12 shooting in 27 minutes. In round two, Young dropped 20 points on 8-of-20 shooting.

Without Thompson on the floor due to injury in 2019, Young notched 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting. In three games against Golden State in his career, Young has only shot 2-of-16 from beyond the arc.

Once Thompson makes his long-awaited return to the court from his ACL injury, Young will have the chance to battle with Golden State’s Splash Brother again.

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Klay Thompson goes through non-contact drills at Warriors practice

Klay Thompson made an appearance at the Golden State Warriors’ recent practice.

The Golden State Warriors welcomed the long-awaited return of Stephen Curry against the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night. The Warriors have been without their two-time Most Valuable Player for the past 58 games due to a broken left hand.

In his first game in four months, Curry racked up 23 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in 27 minutes against the Raptors. The addition of Golden State’s six-time All-Star provided a glimpse of the Warriors of old. The team launched a season-high 52 shots from beyond the arc with Curry back on the floor.

In Curry’s return, something was still missing for the Warriors. Golden State is still without the other member of the Splash Brothers, Klay Thompson. The Washington State product has been ruled out the entire 2019-20 season with a knee injury he suffered in the 2019 NBA Finals.

However, Thompson made an appearance at Golden State’s practice the day after Curry returned to the floor.

The injured shooting guard went through non-contact team drills with his teammates and coaches.

Thompson also spent time getting up jumpers in a shooting workout at practice.

While Thompson won’t play this season for the Warriors, he has yet to be ruled out from the 2020 Olympics. With training camp starting in July, Thompson was named a finalist for Team USA basketball. The next time Thompson suits up for game action could be in Tokyo at the Olympic games.