The Golden State Warriors endured a bit of a scare after shooting guard Klay Thompson suffered an ankle injury in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals versus the Cleveland Cavaliers. Fortunately, he was able to finish out the series albeit in modest fashion.

Thompson managed to fill his usual role, however, it appears he is now just starting to feel the effects. According to Anthony Slater of The Athletic, he says he could not feel his ankle after Golden State's dominant win in Game 4 of the NBA Finals:

“Can't feel it. But it was worth it.”

Needless to say, it was gritty performance by Thompson. The injury initially appeared to be quite severe, however, he still managed to play through the pain in all three games after that.

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It is safe to assume the ankle had an effect on Thompson's overall performance. Despite a strong outing in Game 2, he followed it up by scoring just 20 points on 8-of-21 shooting in the final two games of the series. Fortunately, he still managed to make an impact from deep and on the defensive end.

Klay Thompson has taken plenty of flak for his supporting role in Golden State's star-studded cast. Of course, it would be for any player to stand out alongside two of the premier scorers of this generation in point guard Steph Curry and small forward Kevin Durant. Not to mention charismatic power forward Draymond Green.

However, there is no questioning Thompson's toughness and desire to compete. All the critiques about his role may seem insignificant to him now that he has won his third championship. As for the ankle, it is nothing that another epic trip to China cannot fix.