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It’s been four seasons since Golde State Warriors superstar Klay Thompson last made an NBA All-Star Game. Through five games in the 2022-23 NBA season, Thompson is averaging just 12.6 points per game, his lowest total since his rookie year. And Thompson’s trademark 3-point shooting is at a lowly 31 percent clip thus far.
But some of Thompson’s struggles are to be expected.
The five-time all-star and four-time NBA champ suffered a string of devastating injuries between 2019 and 2020. The unfortunate run began with a torn ACL suffered in the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors. That kept Thompson out more than a year. Then, while working his way back, Thompson ruptured his Achilles while playing in a pick-up game prior to the 2020-21 season.
In total, he lost two full years of his prime.
So when Charles Barkley said on Tuesday night that Thompson’s play was “slipping,” the superstar sniper took the comments personally.
"There was a time when Klay Thompson was the best two-way guard in the NBA and he's not the same guy."
Chuck thinks father time is catching up to the Warriors. pic.twitter.com/9vFZcGsSOe
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) October 26, 2022
Klay Thompson Responds To Charles Barkley’s Comments About His Play “Slipping”
Thompson knows the difficulties he’s faced trying to return to full health. So when he was asked about Barkley’s comments after Golden State’s 123-110 win over the Miami Heat on Thursday night, he had a pointed response.
“It hurts when someone like Charles Barkley, with the platform he has, says you’re not the same player as prior to the injuries you had. It’s like, no duh, man,” Thompson said. “I tore my ACL and my Achilles in consecutive years and still helped a team win a championship. I mean, that hurt hearing that. Because it’s like, man, I put in so much freaking effort to get back to this point. Like, it’s hard to even put into words what I had to do to be the player I am today.
“I played 55, 57 games in three years, like, give me some freaking time to get that back. To hear someone say, ‘Oh, he’s not the same as he was prior to the injuries.’ Like, duh. Who goes through something like that and comes back? Like, I don’t know, it just hurt my heart hearing that. But, you know what? I’m gonna internalize it and it’s gonna be fuel for me to be even better. I’m very proud of what we accomplished last year, and I feel like I was a huge part of it (and) I’m not gonna let these injuries be a crutch for me, I’m just gonna keep going and I’m gonna have a great year. Bet on that.” – via CBS Sports