OAKLAND, Calif. — Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson has been diagnosed with a concussion and will not practice until he is symptom free.
The Warriors announced the diagnosis Friday after Thompson went through neurological tests earlier in the day. The All-Star guard took a knee to the head from Houston Rockets forward Trevor Ariza in the fourth quarter of Golden State’s Western Conference finals clinching win Wednesday night.
Team doctors initially cleared Thompson to return to the game. He ended up not playing, and the team said he started developing symptoms after the game.
The Warriors said Thompson will continue to be evaluated and will not be allowed back on the court until he clears the league’s concussion protocol guidelines. The NBA Finals start Thursday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“This break has turned out to be good for us,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said after Friday’s practice. “And maybe good for Cleveland, too, because they’ve got some injuries. It’s just something we’ve got to work through and we’ll see how it goes.”
Thompson was at the team’s facility but did not practice. The Warriors will practice again Saturday and take Sunday off.
Kerr insisted he will continue to heed the advice of the team’s medical staff moving forward.
“I just do what the doctors say we should do,” Kerr said. “Obviously, we want to be as careful as possible and make sure our players are safe and sound and healthy. So we’ll follow this protocol that the league provides and we’ll have Klay out here when he’s ready.”
Thompson’s father, former NBA player Mychal Thompson, had to drive his son home after the game because he was feeling ill. He said Thursday that Klay vomited a couple of times but had been feeling “better by the hour” and was confident that doctors would clear him before the finals begin.
Thompson also needed stitches on his right ear after the hit caused blood to spill down the side of his head.
Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@Sportsnet
