Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson is looking at a long off-season after tearing his ACL in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals Thursday in Oakland. Photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI |
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June 14 (UPI) -- The Golden State Warriors confirmed early Friday morning that star Klay Thompson sustained a torn ACL before returning to the court to shoot free throws during Game 6 of the NBA Finals.
Thompson picked up the left knee injury with less than three minutes remaining in the third quarter. He was running with the Warriors in transition before he caught a pass from teammate Stephen Curry. Thompson took two steps for a dunk attempt, before being contested by Toronto Raptors guard Danny Green.
Thompson awkwardly crashed to the floor, with his left knee collapsing. He stayed on the ground while in obvious pain until being tended to by the Warriors' medical staff.
He headed to the training room, before turning around and taking two free throws due to being fouled on the play. He left the game after taking the shots and was ruled out for the remainder of the contest.
"Warriors guard Klay Thompson, who exited tonight's Game 6 of the NBA Finals with 2:22 remaining in the third quarter with a left knee injury, underwent an MRI tonight in the Bay Area," the Warriors said in a news release. "The MRI confirmed that Thompson has suffered a torn left Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL)."
Thompson had 30 points and five rebounds before leaving the game. The Warriors were already playing without superstar Kevin Durant, who ruptured his Achilles earlier in the series.
"I mean more than the what ifs is just feeling bad for the players involved," Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters. "Injuries are always part of the NBA season -- any professional sport, injuries play a huge role. It's just the nature of these injuries, the severity of these injuries. And we'll know more about Klay. But we can sit here and say, well, if this hadn't happened or that hadn't happened, that doesn't matter."
"What matters is Kevin Durant is going to miss next season with an Achilles tear and Klay suffered a knee injury. And we'll know, as I said, we'll know more before too long. But it's just brutal. It's just brutal of what these guys have had to deal with and what they're dealing with right now. So that's my initial feeling."
Thompson is a free agent this off-season.
