NBA Finals 2015: Will Concussion Sideline Warriors’ Klay Thompson?

The Golden State Warriors have advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1975. But will they be without one of their key components when they take the court next week?

Guard Klay Thompson suffered a concussion after getting kneed in the side of the head by Houston’s Trevor Ariza during the Warriors Game 5 clincher over the Rockets last night. According to the NBA, Thompson developed “concussion symptoms” after the game.

Klay’s father, Mychal Thompson, meanwhile, shared even greater detail with ESPN, claiming his son vomited late Wednesday night, and reportedly felt “woozy” afterward.

“He threw up a lot late last night but he felt much better afterwards,” said Thompson. who is Klay’s father and a former Lakers great. “Hopefully this break in the schedule will be a good break for Klay and the Warriors.”

With the NBA Finals scheduled to begin Thursday, June 4, the question now becomes: is a week enough rest for Klay Thompson to recover? The elder Thompson thinks so, telling reporters his son would be “ready to go Thursday,” while the team will continue to monitor Klay throughout the weekend.

Klay Thompson composes one-half of the deadly Warriors guard combination and, even though Steph Curry gets the majority of the press, losing Klay for the NBA Finals would be a huge blow to the team.

If Thompson were to be unable to go, the Warriors would undoubtedly lean on Curry to shoulder the load against the formidable Cleveland Cavalier line-up. However, with LeBron James most likely to defend Curry throughout, the Warriors powerful offense could be hamstrung. If that’s the case, it could force Golden State to seek help elsewhere.

According to SB Nation, two likely candidates to fill that void could be Harrison Barnes and Andre Iguodala, who shined in the playoffs to this point.

“Harrison Barnes is the fifth Beatle of the Warriors’ starting lineup and Andre Iguodala is one of the more expensive sixth men in the league. Both had huge roles in vanquishing the Zombie Rockets in Game 5, and both figure to have massive roles against LeBron James in the Finals.”

The article continues, heaping praise on the Warriors unsung role players.

“Late-game Barnes was more than a spot-up shooter,” blogger Tom Ziller contends. “Iguodala consistently looked for him, and the former Tar Heel did some ISO work and crashed the offensive boards. If given space to blossom into more full-time, he’d be a really good third option offensively and perhaps a decent second option.”

And if Klay Thompson is indeed sidelined with a concussion during the NBA Finals, the Warriors are going to find out that out rather quick.

[Klay Thompson photo by: Ezra Shaw]