Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson suffers torn ACL in NBA Finals clincher

Just hours after Kevin Durant announced to the world that he underwent successful surgery on a ruptured Achilles tendon, the Golden State Warriors were back on the floor with an eye toward a three-peat in the 2019 NBA Finals. After a 48-minute battle with the Toronto Raptors in Game 6, the Warriors fell short of their ultimate, on-court goal and, in the process, another high-profile member of the roster suffered a long-term injury when star guard Klay Thompson left the game holding his knee. 

Thompson left the game late in the third quarter when he was fouled on a fast break and, while he heroically returned from the tunnel to make both free throws, it didn't take long for the sharp-shooter to be ruled out for the remainder of the contest. From there, the Warriors announced that Thompson suffered a torn ACL in his left knee, providing a worst-case scenario for the ailment. 

Beyond the reality of a championship that slipped away, partly as a result of injuries to Durant and Thompson, the 29-year-old will now face unrestricted free agency at a sub-optimal time. Prior to the incident, Thompson was projected as a player likely to receive a max contract and, while that still could take place, a normal timetable for recovery would be 11-to-12 months, indicating a potential absence for the entire 2019-20 NBA season. 

Prior to the injury, Thompson was electric in scoring 30 points in 32 minutes and fans of the Warriors will likely dream about what may have transpired on the court if not for the devastating fall. In a broader sense, however, Thompson will now face unrestricted free agency for the first time in his career and, unlike his teammate in Durant, he will not have a lucrative player option to fall back on if the market does not materialize as expected. 

Within the span of a few days, the NBA world recoiled at the horror of a severe injury to a top-tier player and, as a result, the landscape of the league has significantly changed, even beyond the reality that the Toronto Raptors are NBA champions.