After a rough start with the Golden State Warriors, Klay Thompson has ultimately settled from the fact that he needs to trust his personal and team process.
Thompson has been dealing with plenty of limitations from the Dubs. While there might be frustrations coming in, he can only smile and hope for the better moving forward.
“I feel good, but I still know I have another level to get to,” Thompson told ESPN’s Kendra Andrews on Tuesday morning. “I think it will happen sooner than later.”
Optimistic that he would finally be ready and geared up for the Warriors after a title year, Thompson was swarmed by restrictions entering the new season. He took plenty of injury management from the franchise, and only appeared for their last preseason game.
But going into the 2022-23 season, he received minimal exposure from head coach Steve Kerr. He’s only averaging 23.3 minutes per game for the team’s three regular season games so far, as Golden State are looking to be cautious about his availability.
Though this one stands unwanted, Thompson is just looking at the bigger picture.
“I’m such a perfectionist, I want to be great right now,” Thompson said. “But I got to realize, man, it’s a long season. I’d rather peak come playoff time rather than early November or into January.”
The All-star veteran has been out for over 900 days after dealing with an ACL and Achilles tear. As such, the sense of contentment is something that will encourage him amid his ongoing ramp up process.
“Don’t get discouraged with missed shots or missed rotations on defense,” Thompson said. “Sometimes when you come back from injury, you get in your own way. ‘Ahh, I might not be the same player. I might not do this or do that.’ But you just got to be grateful to be out there competing. When I play with that mindset, everything else flows so easily.
“I’m a very prideful person. I forget that what I’ve been through, it’s real. … Although I want to have the big shooting nights, I know that comes with hard work and patience. That stuff is organic.”
