The Boston Celtics will try to hand the Golden State Warriors their first loss of the season, and their cause could be helped by a shorthanded Warriors club.
Warriors swingman Klay Thompson injured his ankle in Golden State’s win over the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday, and his status for Friday night’s game in Boston is still up in the air. Thompson told reporters Wednesday he wants to play, but the decision might not be his to make.
“It feels a lot better,” Thompson told reporters, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “Hopefully, I’ll make the same progress (Thursday), and I should be good to go really soon.”
The Warriors are scheduled to practice in Boston on Thursday, which should give the club a better idea about Thompson’s availability for Friday.
“We’ve obviously going to be cautious with it,” interim head coach Luke Walton said, per the Chronicle. “If there’s any doubt about it, then we’ll rest him. But the training staff was pleasantly surprised with how it looked (Wednesday) morning. He said it feels pretty good, but it’s nice to have these two days to get a sense on he’s doing.”
Thompson played his best game of the season Tuesday in Indiana. He scored 29 first-half points on his way to a season-high 39 on 13-for-21 shooting, including 10 of 16 from 3-point land.
The Warriors are 23-0 entering Friday’s game at TD Garden and have a 27-game winning streak dating back to last season. With a win Friday, Golden State would pass the 2012-13 Miami Heat for the second-longest winning streak in NBA history. The all-time longest is held by the Los Angeles Lakers, who won 33 consecutive games during the 1971-72 season.
Thumbnail photo via Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports Images
