Golden State Warriors wing Klay Thompson does not look like himself to start the season, and it’s getting concerning for fans of the organization.
The five-time NBA All-Star is still recovering from when he suffered a torn right Achilles tendon on Nov. 19, 2020. He said this injury was a lot harder for him to accept than the torn ACL he suffered the season prior.
After winning his fourth NBA championship last season, this past summer allowed Thompson to enjoy his first healthy offseason since before the 2018-19 campaign.
ESPN’s Zach Lowe, however, said he “heard rumblings” that Thompson’s offseason looked very different than it ever had before. Lowe’s colleague, Ramona Shelburne, added more context.
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She noted that Thompson tore his Achilles during a pickup game, and he did not play pickup basketball this offseason (via The Lowe Post):
“There was something in his head that said I don’t want to do that again. I don’t want to put myself in that position. So while he trained and he was in shape, it’s a different level of ramp-up when you’re playing pickup and you are playing five-on-five games and he didn’t do that in the offseason.”
Thompson has confirmed as much, and he said it was hard for him to return to a similar environment where he tore his Achilles tendon.
Klay Thompson didn’t play pickup this summer. Called it a “mental block” he will eventually get over because of torn Achilles in summer ball. But that’s slowed his preseason ramp up. Called next week a “big week” as he revs back up for regular season.
Here he is explaining it pic.twitter.com/0ZCCmWYFO1
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) October 1, 2022
He called it a “mental block” and he is confident he will face it one day.
Thompson elaborated, adding that he was worried that by putting himself in that environment, such an injury could happen again (via SF Chronicle):
“The last time I did play pickup without our training staff’s supervision, it ended horribly,” Thompson told The Chronicle. “I would just think about that. What if it happened again?”
[…]
“I stayed in shape this summer, but I just didn’t feel like playing 5-on-5 without the training staff there,” Thompson said. “They do a great job with their data analysis and gauging where my body’s at under duress.
“So, for me, pickup just wasn’t the highest of importance. I didn’t want to get ahead of myself. I know we have a championship to win.”
Thompson’s father, two-time NBA champion Mychal Thompson, said that he “didn’t question him” when Klay told him that he didn’t want to play pickup because he has earned the benefit of the doubt.
The Golden State star has previously credited playing pickup basketball with his brothers, Trayce and Mychel, for his tenacity on the basketball court. His antics on the court during pickup games in China are legendary.
He expects that he will play pickup basketball again next summer.
