Warriors' Klay Thompson Going 'Full Bore' in 5-on-5; No Date Set for Injury Return

Golden State Warriors shooting guard Klay Thompson is ramping up his activity in five-on-five scrimmages, although there is no set date for his return after suffering a torn Achilles during a Nov. 16, 2020 workout.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr (h/t Kerith Burke of NBC Sports Bay Area) provided the update:

That news comes two days after this encouraging report from Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of The Athletic, who posited the idea of Thompson returning within a week of Christmas:

"Klay Thompson came through well after a week of 5-on-5 scrimmaging and has been cleared to be a full-time participant in all future Warriors’ practices, sources tell The Athletic. Thompson is trending toward a potential return the week before Christmas Day, those sources said."

That would align with Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN's report on the Nov. 10 edition of NBA Countdown:

"I'm told if he continues on his current course right now in rehab, that a target date for his return will be set probably within the next couple weeks. And It could be—there's optimism it could be as soon as December 20, December 23. The Warriors have home games before Christmas, and so the plan for Klay Thompson is to continue to ramp up."

"The Warriors'll go on a road trip in mid-December, and at that point, if Klay continues on this track, he'd go down and play with the Warriors' G League team. And the idea is, and the hope is, they'll have him back perhaps prior to Christmas."

Thompson hasn't played since Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals. He suffered a torn ACL that in a series-ending 114-110 loss to the Toronto Raptors where he posted 30 points in 32 minutes.

The five-time All-Star was set to return for the 2020-21 season after sitting out the entire 2019-20 campaign, but a torn Achilles suffered in a preseason workout forced him off the court for another year.

However, it appears Thompson is nearing his return, and that's a welcome sight for a team that already sits atop the NBA with a 15-2 record. The Warriors are second in offensive rating and first in defensive rating, per Basketball-Reference, and they also outscore their opponents by an average of 13.1 points. 

Adding Thompson can only help make the Warriors even more dangerous as they search for their sixth Western Conference title and fourth NBA crown since 2015.

The Dubs have three games in the seven days leading up to Christmas, which will feature a matchup with the defending Western Conference champion Phoenix Suns, who are 14-3 and winners of their past 13 contests.

Having Thompson back for that game would be hugely beneficial for the Warriors, but for now, the shooting guard is continuing to increase his workload before joining the team.