Yet another big injury will keep a star player on the shelf. Indeed, with the NBA season kicking off on Tuesday, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr says that it’s ‘unlikely’ Klay Thompson will play at all this season for his team.
This news came from an exclusive interview with Logan Murdock who covers the team with NBC Sports.
EXCLUSIVE: Steve Kerr tells @loganmmurdock it's "unlikely" Klay Thompson will play for the Warriors this season as he recovers from his torn ACL. https://t.co/PNcyCxESH7 pic.twitter.com/jWKnv0xRpM
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) October 22, 2019
Next in that interview, Kerr sounded like he has arrived at acceptance with the fact that his team will be down a star player this upcoming year.
“It’s unlikely that he’s going to play this year,” Steve Kerr recently told NBC Sports Bay Area in an exclusive interview that will air at 1 p.m. PT Tuesday in “NBA Season Tip-Off,” only on the MyTeams app. “So we have to understand that.”
Then, he outlined the timetable on why he went public with Thompson likely missing the entire year. Notably, Kerr understands the timeline of a torn ACL; because he had that injury himself.
“You have to look at it realistically,” the Warriors coach said. “I had an ACL [tear] in college, and I missed a whole season. Generally, an ACL for a basketball player is a full-year recovery, and if it’s a full year for Klay, that puts them out for the season.”
Finally, Kerr puts his plan in action on display for how the team will handle the absence of the shooting threat Thompson. Remember, Kevin Durant departed for Brooklyn as a free agent in the offseason.
“We have to prepare our young guys to fill that role behind him, and when he gets back, whenever that is, hopefully these young guys now are developed and in the rotation and ready to really be contributors on a playoff team and we can get better.”
Often in organizations like this one, new stars emerge. Perhaps this is one of the reasons to watch the Warriors this upcoming season – to see who is the ‘next man up’ on the roster. Plus, they still have a healthy Steph Curry.
