The Paper's trainee reporter Hu Jie
Thompson could make a comeback around Christmas this year.
In the 2019 Finals, the scene where Klay Thompson fell with his knees in his hands became a picture frozen in NBA history.
This time, it fell to the ground, rewriting the championship pattern, changing the flow of superstars in the NBA, and affecting it until now.
Clay Thompson himself, on the other hand, had been away from the pitch for two years until he wrote the words – "It's nice to be making progress every day and can't wait to play again!" ”
Although according to ESPN, Clay may not have a comeback in the Warriors until the Christmas war, when he posted a training video and wrote this paragraph after two years of running on the court, many fans still put the "return of The Buddha" into the watching schedule.
To this end, the American media The Athletic specially invited some of Clay's current and former teammates and coaches to chat about their hearts.
In the 2019 Finals, Thompson tore the cruciate ligament in his knee.
"Welcome to Clay's World"
On the court, Clay Thompson is a killer without much expression; privately, Clay is a freewheeling person.
Not taking calls from coach Cole, stacking paper airplanes with the kids after winning the Western Conference championship, carpooling with passers-by to the bar... These seemingly wonderful and interesting little stories connect the world of Klay Thompson.
When coach Kerr had just picked up the Warriors coaching whip, Kerr, who wanted to connect with the team as soon as possible, called every player. But when it came to Clay, no one answered.
Kerr was a little worried about whether Clay was angry because of the team's change of coach, so he called the general manager Bob Myers, "I was really a little worried about Clay, he didn't even call me back. ”
Miles laughed when he heard this, and then said, "Welcome to Clay's world." ”
As Miles says, Clay is free to do whatever he wants, and most of his world is focused on his own business.
Clay attended the premiere of James' film Slam Dunk in the Air 2.
Veteran Barnes told a story: "Once we just won the Western Conference championship, everyone on the team enjoyed it, everyone was chatting, eating or drinking. But Clay was playing with two 9-year-olds, teaching them how to fold paper airplanes. ”
Speights had the same thing: "Once we went to another city, Clay got off the bus directly from the team bus and went to the drugstore to buy something, knowing that there were almost a thousand people outside at that time. ”
In Clay's eyes, he is no different from ordinary people.
Once, when he and the team went to the nightclub on the road, when teammates and Clay met at the nightclub, they found that he had a middle-aged couple next to him.
When his teammates asked him how he had come, Clay replied, "I was outside a bar and a passerby asked me where I was going, and when I said it, I found out they were coming here as well." So, I carpooled with them, and everyone shared the fare equally. ”
In the Internet era, "NBA superstar nightclubs are captured", "top-paid players carpooling with passers-by but still AA", any title seems to be able to cause Clay unnecessary trouble, but he does not care.
As former teammate Ezelli said, "Because Clay is very, very pure. ”
It was this purity that helped him survive the two years of being away from the court due to injury - successive knee and Achilles tendon injuries were devastating for any player, but Clay, nicknamed "Buddha", calmed down and eliminated the pain.
"It's just a series of unfortunate events. I didn't prepare anything and didn't stop it. I just keep doing what I like (basketball). ”
Clay saved the Warriors several times.
"The Clay who will never change"
Clay, who has some big nerves, is the same on the pitch. He has never changed himself compared to thinking about gains and losses.
In one game of his rookie season, Clay fired consecutive shots from outside the three-point line. So during a timeout, the boss of the team at the time, Monta Ellis, said to the "rookie" Clay: "You shoot too much, pass the ball, you are just a rookie." ”
In the first round after the timeout, when the ball reached Clay, he raised his hand and threw out three points and threw the ball in.
Assistant coach De Giorgio Rio couldn't help but sigh: "This kid is really a cold-blooded killer." ”
Azeri also remembers the details of a game. The Warriors led by three points in the final 15 seconds and the ball passed into Klay's hands. "In that case, you just have to hold the ball, and as a result, Clay receives the ball and shoots the ball immediately." Although Aizzelli does not remember whether the ball was scored or not, he remembers the story after the game.
"Hey! What were you doing just now! Why are you shooting? After the ball was thrown, Green grinned and walked over to Clay. Clay only responded lightly: "Brother, the boss paid me to shoot." ”
According to Azeli's recollection, Clay didn't start out that season, struggling a bit in the ten games of the opening season, and after a badly played game, his teammates saw Clay's clothes hanging in the locker room.
The team's equipment manager said: "Clay was so angry that he drove home straight in his jersey. Seeing everything, Azeri added: "Not only the jersey, he wears a full set of game gear. ”
Clay was injured and carried off the pitch.
The enthusiasm and dedication to shooting has even become Clay's habit.
"Once I went to his house to play, and when he was doing something else, he would suddenly make a shooting gesture and move. Once we were waiting for someone at the nightclub, and he suddenly gave you such a whole show. Former teammate Jenkins couldn't help but spit out.
Such an action at least proves that Clay does not lose basketball teenagers in the "secondary two" attribute.
There's also a story that illustrates how seriously Clay takes basketball. By the end of the regular season in the Warriors' first championship season, the Warriors had locked up the rankings before playing against the Suns before Klay fell ill and missed his first game of that season. Although the team won easily, back in the locker room, Clay suddenly stood up and apologized to everyone, saying that he was very sorry that he could not compete with the team.
The veteran Livingston wondered: "I looked at him and Curry and thought we had locked in the rankings, you were injured again, and we still won, is it necessary to make a serious apology..."
Perhaps it was this realism that made Clay's scoring performance of 60 points in the third quarter. David West revealed: "In that game he missed the pre-match shooting warm-up training, he said no more than 5 words before the game, and then he played crazy on the field. He seems to have dribbled a total of 14 times and scored 60 points. ”
Clay showed off a three-point video.
"Psychological recovery is the hardest"
These qualities make people look forward to Clay's return, but when he will be able to return to the field does not seem to be a rush.
In mid-August, Warriors general manager Miles revealed in an interview: "Klay is starting to do some basketball-related things. He's already started practicing shooting, moving, cutting, and so on, but as you know, the most important step in recovering from injuries is to regain his explosive power at 5v5. ”
According to Clay's recovery plan, he may not make a comeback until around Christmas. And he himself understands that it is not an easy task to get back on the pitch.
In a message to the rookies this year, Clay said: "Be yourself and be patient, because your career is not a sprint but a marathon, and that's my advice." ”
Clay cheered himself up.
It's not so much an expectation of a rookie as it is an inspiration to himself — he's said something like this more than once, "I'm grateful to finally be able to start doing what I'm passionate about again." Slowly and steadily become myself! ”
In the recent Warriors' Klay shooting video, Clay's right foot still keeps up after shooting and does not dare to land, which is where he suffered a torn Achilles tendon last year. Apparently, he hasn't fully emerged from the shadow of injury.
"[The Achilles tendon injury] happened during a stop jump shot, which I do 100 times a day." Clay recalls the scene when he was injured, and he admits that psychological recovery is much harder than physical recovery.
"It's harder than any basketball game I've ever played, any physical training. You always wonder if you can still be who you were. ”
In the new season, look forward to the "Splash Brothers" combination.
To this end, Clay consulted various materials while constantly seeking help from veterans. "From what I've read and what I've heard, your explosiveness could drop by 5 percent, maybe 10 percent."
However, the performance of former teammate Durant after recovering from injury also gave Clay a "shot in the arm". But in comparison, Clay's goals are also pragmatic.
In an interview with ESPN, Clay put his thoughts into it: "I don't expect me to run 38 minutes a game as soon as I come back, going around 100 covers to chase the best players on the pitch. But I talked a lot with Rick Selebuney [warriors athletic medicine and performance director] and I might have a 20-minute, 18-minute playing limit at the start of the season, but you'll see me get back to my best athletic form. ”
Indeed, there is only one Clay in the world, and we miss his three points, and we miss him and Curry's ruthless "splash." In the new season, bless Clay, only the word "health".
Editor-in-Charge: Ascendas
Proofreader: Zhang Liangliang