Klay Thompson is now with the Miami Heat after a couple of years with the Dallas Mavericks. He is glad to be on the Heat roster, and he’s excited to be teammates with the team’s new superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Since they are veterans, both Thompson and Antetokounmpo have been playing against each other for over a decade. However, they still had a good friendship, especially when Thompson was dealing with major injuries at the turn of the decade.
Klay Thompson recalls an emotional moment he had with Giannis Antetokounmpo
During his time with the Golden State Warriors, Thompson was successful, as evidenced by his four championships. However, he did suffer some injuries that took him out for nearly 1,000 days back in the early 2020s. He managed to return after that long layoff and win that 2022 championship.
At that point, Thompson was still struggling with navigating a league that he did not play in for two years. Thankfully for Thompson, he had a game against the Milwaukee Bucks, which involved him getting some encouragement from a certain Greek superstar.
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Thompson became emotional when talking about that moment because he felt that he had support from outside his friends, family, and Warriors teammates. It was a big boost for him, and Thompson has not forgotten that time when Antetokounmpo was exceptionally kind to him.
“The year I came back from two-and-a-half years off injury, we played the Bucks. I had a great game. I had 38… After the game, he walked from the opposing bench all the way down to our bench just to tell me how happy he was for me. I don’t want to get emotional, but that meant a lot to me,” Thompson said about Antetokounmpo to Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
That kind of support is rare from an opponent, but it is special because Antetokounmpo figured out a way to make sure that Thompson got the praise he needed and deserved. That won’t be forgotten, especially since they are teammates on the Heat now.
