The countdown to Klay’s comeback is officially on.
According to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater and Shams Charania, Warriors guard Klay Thompson has fared well in 5-on-5 scrimmages this week and has been cleared to rejoin his team in full-contact practice with an anticipated return near Christmas Day. Slater and Charania reported Sunday morning it's conceivable Thompson returns on Dec. 20 against the Sacramento Kings or Dec. 23 against the Memphis Grizzlies.
UPDATE: Shortly before Sunday's game against the Toronto Raptors, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of the reported late December timeline return, "Nobody has told me that. I don't know where that came from."
Thompson started playing 5-on-5 on Nov. 15 as he rehabs from two full seasons away from the NBA. Klay hasn’t played since tearing his ACL in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals, as he also tore his Achilles in Nov. 2020.
Slater and Charania shared more details about Thompson’s recent practice performances, writing, “Those viewing his recent workouts and scrimmages report encouraging shades of the Thompson of old — the shot as deadly as ever, the big guard physicality still a part of his game, though fatigue sets in quickly.”
The day of Klay’s highly-anticipated return is already being billed by Warriors owner Joe Lacob as one of the greatest moments in franchise history. Kerr and the Warriors have guaranteed that Thompson’s 2021-22 debut will take place at home so he can hear the cheers from the Chase Center crowd.
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Aside from the massive morale boost Thompson will give the Warriors, he figures to be a boon for the NBA’s highest-scoring offense (113.9 points per game). Third-year guard Jordan Poole has been mercurial as a starter and he may be better suited to return to a bench role when Thompson rejoins the team.
The Warriors will certainly have to go through a readjustment period with Thompson joining his Splash Brother and MVP front-runner Steph Curry in the backcourt. It’s probably not fair to expect Thompson to retain his elite defending skills from before his injury, but if he’s anywhere close to 2019 Klay, the 14-2 Warriors will be even more dangerous.
Second-year center James Wiseman (meniscus) is also recovering but hasn't been cleared to rejoin the Warriors in practice at full speed.
