Warriors' Klay Thompson cleared for Finals

Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson is officially cleared to play in the first game of the NBA Finals on Thursday.

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Good news for the Warriors came down on Tuesday afternoon. Klay Thompson, the other half of the Splash Brothers, is cleared to play in the first game of the NBA Finals on Thursday night at ORACLE Arena, according to a report by CSN Bay Area. Thompson was kneed in the head by the Rockets Trevor Ariza in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. That game sealed the series win for the Warriors, but Thompson did not return and was later diagnosed with a concussion after displaying symptoms after the game.

Thompson said on Monday that he expected to be cleared for the first game of the Finals, saying that he felt “on his way” and he went all-out in practice as well, according to coach Steve Kerr. Thompson has gone through the league’s concussion protocol and Kerr said he would continue to be evaluated by doctors all the way up to the game on Thursday. Thompson practiced with the team for two hours, then continued an individual workout for another half an hour. He said he felt great afterwards.

Despite feeling nauseated and woozy after Game 5, Thompson said he knew that he would feel better as the week went on and always expected that he would be ready to go in the Finals. Kerr said the same thing, expecting that Thompson would continue to progress and be ready in time for the Finals.

The break between Game 5 and the first game of the Finals obviously has a lot to do with it. If the Warriors had not won Game 5, they would have likely been dealing with a distinct lack of Splash Brother #2 for the rest of the series. Now, they will have both Thompson and Stephen Curry to take on LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, which is good because the Warriors are 2.5 points better per 100 possessions when Klay is on the court.

Thompson’s injury was one of two scary incidents in the Western Conference Finals for the Warriors. The other one was Curry taking a big tumble to the floor and landing on his head. The MVP lay there for awhile face down, leading many fans to suspect the worst. Curry spent the rest of the half in the locker room before returning later in the game. The Warriors didn’t win, but fortunately Curry did not have a concussion and he came back to help them wrap up the series in Game 5.

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Warriors’ Klay Thompson cleared for Finals

By CM Towle | Jun 2, 2015

Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson is officially cleared to play in the first game of the NBA Finals on Thursday.

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