Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry said he was brought to tears after he received the news about teammate Klay Thompson’s season-ending Achilles tendon injury last week.
“You feel for a guy who has worked so hard to get back on the court two-three weeks out of [training camp] and something like that happens,” Curry told The Undefeated on Monday. “You need to have a big-picture mentality when something like this happens. It’s easier said than done going through a lot of rehab, but there is a lot of time left in his career. We’re going to be there through it all.”
Thompson, 30, suffered the Achilles injury during a basketball workout in Los Angeles on Nov. 18. The five-time All-Star is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the 2021-22 season, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported.
Curry learned about Thompson’s injury during a conference call with Warriors general manager Bob Myers and head coach Steve Kerr.
“He’s the best 2-guard in the league,” Curry said. “To get that call was a gut punch for sure. A lot of tears. You don’t really know what to say because a guy like that is having to go through two pretty serious rehabs now. But at the end of the day, we have to have his back. We hope that he is around and a part of what we do through his rehab and staying connected with us.
“He can come back strong. He’s a guy that loves the game so much. He is going to do whatever it takes to get back out there on the floor and be himself. That’s what we hope and the confidence that we have. Two-and-a-half years of rehab is tough for anybody. We’re hoping for the best.”
Curry and Thompson have been teammates since 2011, earning the nickname “The Splash Brothers” and winning three NBA championships together. Curry was looking forward to teaming up again with Thompson, who missed all of last season after tearing the ACL in his left knee during Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors.
The Warriors are hoping to fill Thompson’s shoes with the recent acquisition of veteran swingman Kelly Oubre, who averaged 18.7 points with the Phoenix Suns last season. In addition, they have agreed to terms with free agent guards Brad Wanamaker and Kent Bazemore.
Golden State also added talent through last week’s NBA draft, selecting former University of Memphis center James Wiseman with the No. 2 pick and Arizona point guard Nico Mannion in the second round.
With the newcomers joining three-time All-Star Draymond Green, 2020 all-NBA rookie team selection Eric Paschall and veteran forward Andrew Wiggins, Curry is confident the Warriors will still be formidable without Thompson.
“It’s going to hard at first, for sure. We’ve been waiting seven months to get back out there,” Curry said. “Not seeing [Thompson] on the court, at first, is going to be weird. But I think we’ve done a really good job in the offseason with James and our draft picks and in the free agency pool to put together a really solid roster. We’re going to have to learn a lot really quickly, and we will need a full commitment from everybody.
“We know we can compete with anyone in the league. It’s kind of crazy. We know how great Klay is. Don’t get me wrong. But we hear the chatter. ‘It’s the end of for us. This year is a wash. What are we going to do in the future?’ But we are in the moment right now. It’s kind of refreshing being in that category as guys that are chasing. We know [the Los Angeles Lakers] are the defending champs. We got to beat them. We’re ready for it.”
