Warriors must be cautious despite Klay Thompson's leg injury optimism

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TORONTO — Klay Thompson had broken through the haze of low-percentage shooting and was having his most impactful game in several weeks when he came up lame in the fourth quarter Sunday night.

It’s a rare sight and profoundly unsettling for the Warriors.

But there was Thompson, hobbling into the locker room with 7:59 remaining in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. The 6-foot-7 guard, operating at peak efficiency, was diagnosed with tightness in his left hamstring and did not return.

Though the Warriors held on for a 109-104 victory over the Raptors after Thompson departed, tying the best-of-seven series at one game apiece, the injury put a cloud of uncertainty over the proceedings.

A cloud that Thompson tried to blow away with optimism.

“I plan to play Game 3,” he said even while grimacing.

“Klay said he'll be fine, but Klay could be half dead and he would say he would be fine,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “We'll see. He pulled his hamstring. He thinks it is minor, so I don't know what that means going forward.”

What that means, for now, is that Thompson is looking at the brightest possible outlook for himself. He is extremely tough, the team’s most durable player, and has shown an ability to play through serious discomfort.

But hamstring issues tend to linger, and the Warriors do not have the luxury of time. Game 3 is Wednesday in Oakland, and Game 4 is on Friday. The series moves back to Toronto for Game 5 on June 10. Game 7, if needed, would be June 16.

Thompson might plan to play through a hamstring pull, however slight, but whether he is cleared will be dictated by the results of an MRI on Monday and consultation with the team’s medical/training staff. The Warriors typically use caution, and that certainly would apply to any involving a hamstring, a groin or a calf, as Kevin Durant knows.

“We’ve got a great training staff,” veteran center Andrew Bogut said. “They’ll make sure we get guys healthy. The rehab and the recovery will start in about 30 minutes on the plane [back to Oakland]. Guys will get all of their ice and everything they need.

“One thing about Klay: If he can walk, he’s playing. Like the last Finals.”

Enduring a left lateral leg contusion sustained in a collision for Cleveland’s J.R. Smith in Game 1 of the 2018 Finals against Cleveland, Thompson completed his vow of not missing any games and played in Games 2, 3 and 4 en route to a Warriors sweep.

In this instance, Thompson went up for a jump shot, and midair contact with Toronto guard Danny Green resulted in the Warriors guard landing awkwardly, his legs stretched well out to each side. Upon rising, he immediately grabbed at his left hamstring.

[RELATED: Injuries, not Raptors, biggest obstacle for Warriors in Finals]

It’s hard to be optimistic about a quick recovery from a hamstring injury, whether it’s a mild strain or something more serious.

Ask the Houston Rockets. They still believe Chris Paul’s hamstring injury in Game 5 of the 2018 Western Conference finals cost them a chance to knock off the Warriors, who came back to win games 6 and 7.

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