Golden State Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson exited Game 6 of the NBA Finals with a knee injury, undergoing an MRI which revealed he had a torn ACL, the team announced.
Klay Thompson injury update: pic.twitter.com/9b7dZfde9U
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) June 14, 2019
Thompson fell awkwardly following a dunk attempt in the third quarter, immediately grabbing his left knee, before being helped off the court.
After briefly heading down the tunnel, he returned to the court quickly to his shoot free throws - had he not returned he would have been ruled out for the remainder fo the game.
Thompson made both free throws to give the Warriors an 85-80 lead before heading back to the locker room, reportedly telling coach Steve Kerr he only needed a brief rest, before he was ultimately ruled out.
Steve Kerr said Klay Thompson told him on his way off the court: "Just a two minute rest and I'll be ready." Next thing Kerr heard Klay was done for the night, crutching out of the arena.
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) June 14, 2019
"It's amazement that we're sitting in this position with -- during the game, we have a chance to win the game and force a Game 7, go back to Toronto -- you just think, 'How? How has this group of guys put themselves in position to do it?'" Kerr said when asked what he was thinking when Thompson was injured. "And then, as I said, when Klay goes down and is out for the game, it's just sort of a, 'You gotta be kidding me. This has to stop.'
"But it's just -- the way it's gone, I don't know if it's related to five straight seasons of playing 100-plus games and just all the wear and tear, but it's devastating."
After going down with an apparent knee injury and leaving the court, Klay Thompson returns to a roar from the Oracle crowd to shoot the free-throws. 👏#NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/Px5gtYtKHm
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 14, 2019
Thompson was in the midst of another all-time Game 6 performance, leading the Warriors with 30 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-6 from the three-point line.
